The Empress
by SpiritPrincess101
Summary: All people have their own background story; Sanada Genichirou learned that the hard way. Transitioning from rivals to student-and-tutor to the most talked-about couple in school, Sanada and his empress grow to understand each other, to love, to trust-and the moment she loses her balance, he'll be there to catch her. Please READ & REVIEWWW! CH21 UP: Everything and Anything.
1. First Impressions

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Prince of Tennis, but I do own Moriyama Kimiko (the OC) in this story. Please respect that.

Now, do enjoy the first chapter of my newest creation, "The Empress!"

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><p><span>Regular POV<span>

It was the beginning of a regular day. The sun was shining outside, the birds were chirping their usual birdsong…and somewhere in the middle of nowhere, a routine cloud of gloomy dismay hung over a young girl.

Kimiko twisted her neck to the left, staring determinedly out the classroom window in a vain attempt to ignore the obnoxiously high-pitched squeals of the girls fawning over the object of their affections: Sanada Genichirou, high school 3rd year, Rikkaidai Tennis Vice Captain, top grades in the history class…aka Kimiko's seatmate.

"Sanada-san! Please go out with me!"

"Oh my gosh Sanada-kun! You're so hot!"

Kimiko groaned in dismay at the fangirls' pathetic cries of their already obvious devotion. She glanced over at her classmate, and was greeted by an extremely disgruntled Sanada who could do nothing but sit like a stone in his seat, eyebrows furrowed. He looked at her, his eyes silently, yet stoically, entreating her to help him.

_Help me get rid of these pests_, his eyes desperately communicated to her.

The class president snorted out loud at this. One: they definitely would not leave, especially because the person trying to shoo them away was a GIRL; they'd just consider her another rival, and two: what happened to the strict fukubuchou on the tennis courts that gives everyone slaps and laps for losses and behavior issues?

She ignored Sanada, who continued to try to fend off the rabid fans, until finally, the bell rang.

Their history teacher walked in. Placing his books and teaching materials on the desk, he clapped his hands, saying "Everyone, get to your seats! Class is starting." A subtle chorus of groans filled the classroom, along with the sound of shuffling feet and screeching chairs.

The girls surrounding the stoic vice captain also unwillingly trudged back to their desks, which fortunately, for Sanada, were on the opposite side of the room. He breathed a sigh of relief under his breath; he thought they'd never go away.

Except now, there was something new on his agenda. Confront his merciless classmate.

Kimiko just didn't get it. Her eyes flickered over to the person on her right, who just happened to be Sanada.

What was it about this stoic, practically mute, and known-to-be-violent boy did people like? The younger boys looked up to him, all the girls squealed about him daily, the teachers adored him. Was she the only one who thought he was a completely socially inept idiot who didn't deserve all this attention?

Sure he didn't want the attention, as one could see. But it pissed her off to no end that he got all of it without having to even _try_, whereas she campaigned for months to have people recognize her as a competent class president. Where's the fairness in life?

Pausing for a second, she scoffed. Oh yeah, she almost forgot. There was none.

Huffing in frustration, she turned back towards the board, paying some absentminded attention to what the teacher was saying. History was her best subject, so it wasn't a big deal if she didn't listen wholeheartedly; she would just study some more tonight.

Finally, the bell. Sanada had been itching to talk to Kimiko the entire class, but being the good (and silent) student he was, he decided to not interrupt the teacher and confront her afterwards.

As the class picked up their possessions and were slowly filing out the door to go to lunch, he grabbed Kimiko tightly by the wrist to stop her from leaving.

She turned slightly, looking coolly downwards at their hands, and back up at him—her eyes said, "_Take your hands off me right now_."

He let go, not because of the threat in her eyes, but because he knew it was rude to keep his hand on hers when he had gotten her attention. At least, that's what he said to himself. Now, back to the issue at hand.

"Moriyama." He said simply, his eyes narrowed.

She knew exactly what he wanted to talk about, but feigned innocence. "What, Sanada?"

His eyebrows furrowed together. "You know what I'm talking about."

She raised an eyebrow, continuing her act.

Exasperated, Sanada pointed at their desk and said "There. Even though I'm your seatmate, you wouldn't shoo those pests away. Tarundoru!"

Kimiko scoffed again. "Those girls are your problems. You get rid of them yourself." She paused, "And by the way, that word doesn't work on me Sanada. I'm not your tennis team."

With that she spun on her heel and walked briskly out the door, leaving the usually stoic vice captain stunned. _What is up with that girl?_ His eyes darkened. She's definitely on his top 10 hated people list.

The regulars usually met up outside the fenced tennis courts during lunch. A little late, Sanada strode quickly to where the rest of regulars had grouped together.

Yanagi and Yukimura immediately turned towards him. "Running a tad late, Genichirou." It wasn't a question, but a simple statement.

And he acknowledged that. "Aa," he grunted, "Something came up." And he would have left the issue at that, if it weren't for Yanagi.

Yanagi Renji: data specialist, 3rd year, and one of the three Rikkaidai Demons. Also one of Sanada's closest friends.

He raised an eyebrow, eyes still closed as usual. "Something, Genichirou?"

Oh boy. Sanada was not too happy about what he was sure was coming.

"50% something happened in class, 87.5% it happened in your history class just now, and 100% it's over something trivial."

Sanada grumbled, "If it's trivial, then why are you even bothering to mention it?"

Yanagi smiled. "Ii data. So who's done it this time, Genichirou?"

Sanada kept silent about it, and attempted to change the topic. "It's nothing important, so don't ask. Let's get started with practice." He began walking over to the tennis courts gate.

Yukimura spoke up this time. "Does it have to do with Kimiko-chan? She's your seatmate in history class, right?"

Sanada froze for a split second, and then kept walking. The two other demons noticed. Looking at each other with the ghost of a smile on their faces, they caught up to Sanada and began to pester him.

"Genichirou, what did Kimiko do to you?" Yukimura grinned.

"Nothing!" The stiff fukubuchou finally lost his temper. He was sick and tired of this. "That impudent_ childhood friend of yours_…_She_ is nothing to me!"

Unfortunately, the moment he said the forbidden word, "she," all of the regulars piled into the conversation, exclaiming loudly.

"Who? Who?" Akaya and Marui piped up excitedly. Consecutively, Jackal's interest was piqued and also asked what was going on.

Niou simply grinned and whistled, "Puri~" while Yagyuu desperately tried to calm all of them down. He nervously adjusted his glasses, saying, "Everyone, it's very rude to Sanada-kun. Leave him alone."

Sanada was grateful to Yagyuu for trying, although he didn't show it on his face. This tennis team was going to be the death of him.

Turning on the regulars, he yelled at the top of his lungs, "Everyone, get into your practices! Or 200 laps around the courts! Gossiping and talking is not allowed. TARUNDORU!" he bellowed out. Yukimura and Yanagi chuckled before walking to their own practice matches; this was definitely their fukubuchou.

Kimiko groaned again. Why, oh why, did they have to change seats today in math? Actually, that wasn't the problem. It was WHO she had to sit with now.

Yup, folks. Now she had two classes where she had to be seatmates with Sanada. Sighing in frustration again, the usually unaffected class president buried her head into her arms, wishing the ground would swallow her up—along with the idiot's stupid fangirls.

The teacher noticed. "Moriyama Kimiko-san, since you seem to be SO exasperated with my pace in teaching this class, I assume you understand how to do this problem already? Please come up and give us the answer."

Kimiko was horrified. Math was her _worst_ subject, so the teacher hated her (is what she thinks).

She stood up and walked up to the board, looking at the problem. It wasn't that difficult, but if only she had looked at the examples last night a little more thoroughly…

She bit her lip, trying to remember how to do it. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her teacher shaking his head, while she could hear the slight sniggers of the fangirls behind her.

"I guess she doesn't know how to do it."

"Wow, I didn't know the prez was stupid."

Kimiko was about to cry. She did know it! But it wasn't coming to her. She looked sideways at her teacher, who finally sighed and gave in. "All right, Moriyama-san. It's fine. Go back to your seat."

The girl was relieved, and stiffly shuffled back to her desk, trying to keep face.

The most annoying thing was what happened next. "Sanada-kun, please come up to answer it for your seatmate." Kimiko was internally horrified. "_What?" _she thought.

Sanada stood up, bowing slightly in acknowledgement, and went up to the board, finishing the problem in less than 10 seconds. His fangirls, who sat behind Kimiko and Sanada, sighed dreamily.

Kimiko's hand curled into a fist, her fingernails digging in so deep they almost cut her palm to the point of bleeding. She sat down, but her face was turned downwards, and when Sanada came back to sit, she didn't spare him a single glance. He had embarrassed her; she was sure she would not talk to him for the entire week.

As soon as the bell rang, she stood up to go, but this time, instead of being hindered by Sanada, the teacher called her and the boy to see him.

"Moriyama-san, Sanada-kun, please come see me right now."

Kimiko was puzzled. She looked at Sanada, who seemed just as confused—his eyes were narrowed almost into slits. She guessed it was the first time he was called to talk to a teacher after class. Speaking of which, same for her.

They approached the desk, at which the teacher told Sanada, "Actually, Sanada-kun, please do me a favor and stand over in the corner for a bit?" He nodded politely and backed up as far as possible.

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><p><span>Kimiko POV<span>

Our sensei faced me. "Moriyama-san, I understand that you have your responsibilities as class president on the student council, but it is unforgivable for that to affect your grades in my class."

I opened my mouth, "Wha—"

He shoved a pile of papers in my open hands. "These are your tests and papers from this past month. Please explain."

I looked through them, then my eyes widened. A big fat red "C" "D" and "F" were on my last test, essay, and homework assignment. How could this be? I was studying…Then I realized that I had been focusing on everything BUT math for the past month or two.

By the time I get back from student council, it's so late, and then I push my math homework last, so sometimes I don't even finish…Oh god.

I could only helplessly look with puppy eyes at my teacher. He sighed again. "I thought so."

What was he going to do to me? Don't call my parents, I pleaded desperately.

He called Sanada over. "Sanada-kun, I'd like you to do me a favor." Oh no…I had a bad feeling about this.

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><p><span>Sanada POV<span>

"Sanada-kun? I'd like to have you tutor Moriyama-san until I deem her grades as acceptable again."

I was not happy with this. To tutor that monkey of a girl? Her rudeness was already intolerable, but to let her own grades slip like this? She was class president for heaven's sake; she's the example for the school!

Looking over at her, I noticed her eyes were as big as saucers and her jaw had been dropped open. So she was surprised as well.

Well, there was nothing I could do about this. Math wasn't my favorite (history was), but the teacher asked, and Seiichi would kill me if I did otherwise, for his precious childhood friend. Honestly, how could he associate with this tomboy?

I tried to hold back a growl. "Yes, sensei," I grinded out of my clenched teeth.

He clapped his hands in approval. "Good! Well then," he turned to Moriyama, "I expect you two to get along and show me better grades within the next week!"

"NEXT WEEK?" the girl shrieked, shocking the teacher. Even I was surprised. I thought she was the cool and high and mighty-acting president. Who knew that there was this side of her? She kind of resembles Atobe in that sense…I shook my head clear of those thoughts, and then realized she had stuck her hand in front of me.

"Since sensei requires it," she said gruffly, "I'm in your hands. Yoroshiku, Sanada."

I took her offered sign of truce (not that we were warring in the first place). "Aa," I agreed, while our blasted teacher stood in the background, beaming.

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><p><span>Regular POV<span>

The two walked out the school gates, then looked at each other.

"So when do you want to do this?" Kimiko asked apprehensively. She wasn't changing her opinion of Sanada any time soon. Not unless he shows her a better side of him.

Sanada put a hand on his head to calm his pounding headache. This was going to be a really weird next month. "When are you free?"

"I have the most time on Wednesday usually, but I also have student council meetings from 3-4 that day. That and the weekends." She paused. _I suppose I should also respect his times as well._ "You?" she asked stiffly.

Sanada thought about it. "Wednesdays work. I have tennis practice all the other days anyways."

He looked over at the girl, who was shuffling her feet in embarrassed frustration. "If something's on your mind, Moriyama, spit it out. I don't have all day." And he meant that literally—the sun was almost below the horizon.

She mumbled something.

"What?" Sanada said.

"I said, can we do it at your house?" the usually cool class president was almost begging him. "I don't want my parents to know or worry about me. I'll just tell them it's a studying session with friends."

Sanada snorted. _Friends, huh_. "All right," he grunted. He was going to have to explain this to his own family; he disapproved of lying, but the girl had her own problems to deal with. It wasn't his business.

Kimiko looked up at the taller boy, having regained her cool composure. "Well then, as tomorrow is Saturday, I'll see you tomorrow, at your house at 10, Sanada." And she stalked off towards home.

The fukubuchou had no clue whether he should be extremely amused or angry. Who did she think she was? Oh. Right, the class prez.

Then something hit him, how did she know where he lived? Thinking about it for a split second, he immediately dismissed the thought. She could ask around. If she didn't come, it wasn't his problem. With that, the stoic vice captain began heading home as well.

Anybody else besides the two cool middle-schoolers would have laughed at the sight. It was quite a spectacle, Rikkaidai's two stoniest students interacting and then walking away, still cold, towards _each other_. That was what Yukimura Seiichi thought as he grinned and stood up, walking away from the bush he had been crouching behind.

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><p>Saturday, 9:30 AM<p>

Kimiko was at a loss. For all that she had said yesterday…she didn't know where that stupid Sanada's house _was_.

Grabbing her phone and speedily punching in a few numbers, she waited for the person on the other end of the line to pick up. "Come on, Seiichi, pick _up_ already" she whispered to herself impatiently.

Finally, the captain picked up. "Kimi-chan?"

"Ah! Seiichi! Sorry for calling you this early in the morning." The young girl said apologetically.

"No, no. It's fine. On the other hand, what's wrong? You seem kind of…jumpy." Yukimura wanted details. And when the captain says he wants something, he gets it.

"Ah, well, you see..." Kimiko quickly explained what was going on.

"…" Yukimura was silent for a bit.

"…Seiichi?" Kimiko asked, wondering why he wouldn't say anything.

"…hahahaHAHAHA!" The captain's chuckles burst into laughter.

"Seiichi! No laughing!"

"Sorry, sorry. Isn't this the first time something like this has happened?"

"Yeah…I can't believe it had to be Sanada. He's so annoying."

"Oh? You seem displeased, Kimi-chan."

"Sorry, Seiichi. I know he's a friend of yours, but he really pisses me off! Like, he's totally silent, anti-social, and intimidating, yet everybody loves him! Sure, he's hot, but that doesn't mean he's a god!"

Yukimura grinned as he heard something resembling the girl slapping herself for what she just said. "OK, Seiichi, I did NOT just say that he's hot."

"No, of _course_ you didn't." he grinned wider.

"Argh, I know you're smiling like a Cheshire cat over there, so I give up! But tell me, where does Sanada live? I have…oh shoot! 15 minutes to get there! Seiichi, where?" she shrieked into the phone. Yukimura had to hold the phone arm's length away to protect his eardrums. It was one thing to deaden someone's senses during a tennis match using tennis…another to completely destroy it for life just by using one's voice.

"OK, ok, I'll tell you. So you ride the train to…"

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><p><span>Regular POV ( Sanada's house)<span>

**Ring ring**

A boy picked up the phone. "Sanada residence."

"Oh, Genichirou."

"Aa, Seiichi. Good morning."

"Yes, 'morning to you, too. I take it that Kimiko's not with you yet?"

Sanada's eyes narrowed. "How did you know about that?" He was referring to the entire tutor issue.

"She told me." The captain said simply.

Sanada knew better than to pry for details. He sighed, "Yes, and what about it?"

"…Be nice to her, will you?"

The stoic vice captain was surprised. "What brings this about?"

"She's kind of…finds it difficult when it comes to communicating with guys. So just be nice to her?"

Sanada thought, _Aren't you a guy?_ But he replied, "We'll see."

Yukimura took that as a yes. "Thanks, Genichirou. Have fun," and hung up.

Sanada scoffed, _As if this could be any fun_. Right at that moment, the bell rang. Sanada glanced at the clock, 30 seconds before 10.

He let a smirk run onto his features. This girl was prompt. He considered what had happened, and came up with the conclusion that she was different…In a good way.

So maybe, just maybe, he could tolerate her for the next couple of months. He went to open the door, and was greeted by a rare sight: here the class president was, in casual clothes, bent slightly over with her hands on her knees, her breath coming in pants, and boasting some horrifically messy hair.

Oh yes, this girl was **definitely** not Sanada's definition of normal.

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><p>Please review! I know it's kind of rare to see this pairing, but I hope you liked it! I'm trying to keep Sanada in character, but it's hard….**pouts** So please continue to support me and give feedback! I appreciate every single one of you, so thank you in advance for everything!<p>

Love you all! And please use alerts/favorites to continue to check up on this story! Thanks!

~Hime-chan

P.S. I am still working on all my other stories, so please read those too!


	2. Reconsidering

Hey all!

I've kept you waiting! I swear this is the fastest I've ever updated…

Anyways, so here's the regular thing: PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!

Disclaimer: I only own Moriyama Kimiko, not Prince of Tennis.

Now, please enjoy my newest piece! Chapter 2 of "The Empress!"

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><p><span>Regular POV<span>

Kimiko gripped her head in frustration, staring at the sheet of practice math problems in front of her. This was not working; her head was swimming just looking at these. She glared over to the person on her right, trying to burn a hole through him for giving her all of these.

Said guilty person felt her eyes on him and turned, saying nonchalantly, "Are you done?"

Kimiko's hands balled up into fists, and she glared even harder at the boy. _If only looks could kill_, she thought to herself, then turned to her tutor, "Sanada, you jerk! You can't just _give_ these to me! I don't get a single one!"

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><p><span>Kimiko POV<span>

He simply stared at me stoically; his gaze was kind of unnerving. It didn't move from my face, and then it was so deep, I felt like he could see through my very soul. I was like a deer in headlights, and all I could do was glare back.

Eventually, Sanada won the tacit glaring contest, and I resignedly returned to my math problems. Well, returned to staring at them blankly, was more like it. So, let's see, 2x + y equals…wait what?

I looked again. "2x…plus…y…equals…equals…_equals_…" I was doing my best, but I HATE MATH! CURSE THE BLASTED PEOPLE WHO INVENTED THE STUPID SUBJECT!

Sanada sighed, and came over to me. I jumped when I heard his deep voice resonate in my ear, "I can't believe you don't know how to do these. Tarundoru." I heard him added under his breath. Wow, he remembered that it doesn't work on me, so he didn't bother yelling it. (A/N: fufu…poor Sanada)

He grabbed my pencil, which I had laid on the side of the paper and began scribbling down the process and final answer neatly on the sheet. But that wasn't the problem! (A/N: LOL no pun intended!)

The problem was that he was practically on top of me! When he came over to help me, he had looked over my shoulder, and then just started writing so that his head was practically on my shoulder, his chest on my back, and his right arm half hugging me!

Eeek!

"-yama" I heard. _Eh?_ "-riyama!"

"EARTH TO MORIYAMA!"

"AH!" I was shocked out of my already shocked trance.

"Aa, I see you've returned to this dimension," Sanada said drily.

"Gomen," I apologized, "I blanked out for a second there."

"Clearly," he scoffed. "Now get started on those other ones. I've finished the first for you, so treat it as an example."

I looked at him closely. Now that I thought about it, Sanada wasn't a bad person. Smiling to myself, I continued on the other problems. Maybe, just maybe, the next month would be fun, after all.

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><p><span>Sanada POV<span>

After that episode, Moriyama actually worked faster than I expected her to. The weirdest thing about her was that the entire time, her face had this small smile on it. It wasn't the smile I saw in class when she was being the sarcastic, uptight her; it was gentle, and kind of…angelic.

No, not angelic. Angels don't exist, and this rude excuse of a woman was definitely not going to become one.

Moriyama finally finished and handed me the sheet. "Here, Sanada. Can you check them for me?"

I nodded. I suppose it's fair for me to do that; otherwise she doesn't know if she got them right or wrong. That wouldn't help her. My eyes flickered from answer to answer. …For someone who is failing math, she picks up pretty quickly. Not that I'd admit that to her.

I glanced over at said person, who happened to be sleeping on the floor of my room. Her long hair was splayed out behind her, and she was taking in deep breaths, that same peaceful smile on her face.

When I saw a wrong answer on her paper, I felt somewhat (mind you, somewhat) guilty I'd have to wake her, but this was my job as a tutor. I poked her, "Oi Moriyama. Wake up."

"Hnn?" she grunted in response. "What?" she asked sleepily.

"You got number five wrong. It's x = 2, and y = z = 3."

"No it's not, it's no solution you idiot. When you put it in a matrix and do row operations, you'll see that 0 = 12 and that's impossible, so it's no solution." With that, she rolled over onto her side and fell asleep again.

I looked at her. …What nonsense was she spouting? Just to see where she went wrong, I tried putting it into a matrix. It was obvious she got it wrong; we hadn't even taught this in class yet, so there was no way she…Hold on a minute.

My eyes scanned over my work again and again in disbelief. She was…right? I turned my head back to her on the floor. Who was this girl? I thought she was failing math, not accelerated!

Again, like that day in class, I was itching to talk to her, but afraid of rudely interrupting her sleep, I let it go until she awoke.

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><p><span>Regular POV<span>

At her mumbling signal that she wasn't sleeping anymore, Sanada poked her until she was wide-awake. "Oi, Moriyama. Get up."

Kimiko sat up and glared at Sanada. "Yes? How were the answers?" she asked warily.

Sanada looked at her, examining her. Slightly uncomfortable at his unwavering gaze, Kimiko continued glaring. "What are you looking at?"

He shoved the paper at her. "You understand this…even more than I do," he added quietly. "How can you be failing math?" Sanada couldn't help but be curious. Sure, he didn't like the girl at all, but he supposed it wouldn't hurt…to just know why.

She glared at him for a few seconds, also wondering why he wanted to know, then decided he didn't mean harm, and looked down at her hands, letting go of her cold facade. "It's just me. When I get home from school, it's really late, and I hate math, so after I finish student council, I do everything but math, and then…"

"Tarundoru," Sanada said quietly. "You have the potential, yet you shove it below everything else. That's a waste."

Kimiko turned her face back up to him. It was the first time she'd ever heard Sanada compliment anyone. Well, she supposed this was the closest he would ever get to complimenting someone directly.

She shrugged, a simple lift and drop of her shoulders, effectively ending the conversation. An awkward silence ensued, neither knowing what to say, when all of a sudden, a knock came from outside the door of Sanada's room.

"Gen-chan?" a voice called, causing Kimiko to jump in surprise.

Sanada visibly stiffened; Kimiko had to cover her mouth to prevent her laughter from escaping. "Yes?" he bit out in response to his mother.

"Lunch is ready. Why don't you invite your friend to eat with us?"

Sanada's "friend" glanced at her watch. Wow, it was already 12? Her stomach growled in response to her realization. And so did Sanada.

"Mother, we'll be down in a few minutes, so could you give us a bit of time to finish?"

"Okay," Sanada's mother replied, and left. The two middle schoolers could hear her footsteps fading away, and when they could no longer hear them, Kimiko immediately unclasped her hand from her mouth and burst into a fit of unstoppable giggles.

"Gen-_chan_?" she cried out in her mirth. "Oh my gosh…" and she collapsed on the floor again in giggles, unable to speak.

Sanada growled. He mentally took back that statement about tolerating the next month. If this was just the first day…he shook his head; he could feel a migraine coming. "Just come with me. Since my parents want to meet my first 'student,'" Kimiko stuck her tongue out at him at his word choice, "I guess there's no choice." He stood up and opened the door wide, glaring at the girl. "Hurry up, let's go."

She sighed. "Hai, hai, _sensei_," she snickered, walking past Sanada, her hair flowing behind her as she dashed down the stairs. He put his hand to his head; oh yes, there was definitely a migraine coming at this rate.

* * *

><p><span>Kimiko POV<span>

The two of us approached the dining table together. Sure, I hated the guy's guts to the depths of…well, you get the point, but as I _was_ a guest, I might as well tolerate him for a meal and try to be approachable at least to his family.

Reaching the table, I immediately stepped forward and bowed deeply as my parents had taught me when I wore the kimono as a little girl. "Thank you for allowing your son to teach me." _Not_, I thought to myself. "I am indebted to all of you, and am further grateful for your offer of such a fine meal." _There, that should give a good impression_.

I straightened back up, and was immediately horrified by the looks of the people who greeted me. Sanada's mother was in front of me, giving me a blank look. An elderly man (I'm assumed it's Sanada's grandfather?) next to her displayed a shocked face, and his father had a similar look on him.

"Um…?" I ventured.

And out of the blue, the grandfather began clapping his hands, subsequently followed by Sanada's parents. It was my turn to be shocked. _Did I just do something brilliant or stupid?_ I looked at Sanada, but he had the usual unemotional mask of his on his face. Just by glancing I could tell that asking for clarification from him would be equivalent to talking to a brick wall. I stuck my tongue at him quickly and turned back to his family.

His grandfather beamed brightly at me. "That was an excellent execution of the ojigi (A/N: that's the Japanese term for bowing) and manners, my dear child! Where did you learn it?"

"You're like a princess from the old fairy tales," his father added.

"With long flowing black hair, and those pretty eyes and white skin," his mother tacked in dreamily.

"Uh…" I was dumbfounded. _No one_, and I repeat, _no one_, had ever complimented me so much in my life before, not even my parents! Oh, well Mitsu-kun sometimes did…but this was a first. Definitely.

Finally, Sanada sighed from behind me and stepped in. "Grandfather, mother, father, you're troubling her."

"I APPROVE!" the grandfather crowed, causing both Sanada and I to take a step back. Even his parents looked over at the elder one in surprise.

"She will do," his grandfather said, nodding contentedly to himself. I looked at Sanada for help again, _What?_ I hoped my eyes communicated the right message. I guess they did. He looked back and me and subtly rolled his eyes, replying, _Later_.

Finally, after lots of confusion, and one heck of a lot of chaos, the five of us sat down to a full-course Japanese lunch. Hoo boy, it looked and smelled and…WAS delicious! My lord, I hadn't tasted proper traditional Japanese food since my parents left for Germany!

(A/N: Yes, she lives alone. I explain later.)

Halfway through my as-lady-like-as-possible wolfing of the meal, Sanada's grandfather began asking me questions, such as the basic "What is your name?"

I almost choked, and immediately put all my utensils down, doing a makeshift bow while sitting. "I'm very sorry I haven't introduced myself. I am Moriyama Kimiko, and am same grade as Sanada…-kun," I added with second thought. I definitely couldn't let down my polite façade too much around strangers…or were his family still strangers? Hm…

"…Moriyama?" his grandfather thought for a bit. I bit my lip, desperately wanting to return to my lunch.

His father then entered the conversation, even though for the most part, he and Sanada's mother had been silent the entire time, just like their son. "Could you possibly be the sole heir of the Moriyama Dojo Group?"

I nodded.

"Your parents recently went to Germany to help with the dojo branches, am I right?"

* * *

><p><span>Sanada POV<span>

At hearing this, I stiffened. That's why when I first met her I thought her name was familiar!

You've got to be kidding me…that famous group of professional martial artists? She was the heir to that legendary dojo group?

Then the second part hit me. "You live alone?" I turned to her.

She looked back at me, "Yes, and…?" she prompted, as if waiting for me to challenge her personal life. I narrowed my eyes; I could tell this had ruffled her feathers slightly. So, I backed down, not wanting to make a commotion in front of my family.

Then, my grandfather posed another question, which piqued my interest once more: "Do you do any of the arts?"

Moriyama immediately answered, "Yes, aikido." I raised an eyebrow. _This girl? Aikido?_ She seemed to stop and ponder for a moment, before quietly adding, "And traditional dancing."

I couldn't help but scoff at this, while my mother nudged me as if to say, _"Gen-chan, that's rude!" _

I nodded my head in acknowledgement, but turned back to Moriyama, curious. "You do know that there is no way dancing is a type of martial art?"

She visibly turned pink, with fury or embarrassment I didn't know, nor did I care. The words that came out of her mouth next were absolutely ridiculous: "You're ignorant, you know, Sanada-_kun_," she addressed me, adding a sickeningly sweet honorific at the end that I knew she didn't mean with respect.

I scoffed again, "No, you are. Dancing requires no focus of the mind nor the dedication that the martial arts do. Take a look at kendo, judo, and even your own aikido. For a martial artist like yourself to not recognize which are and which aren't, you should reorganize your values." I said to her.

At first I thought she was going to cry, but she faced me and spat, "Sanada, you have no idea what you're talking about. Dancing requires just as much focus and dedication as the martial arts _you_ seem to love so much. Every step and routine, every breath and facial expression are carefully planned and thought out by the choreographer and dancers. Those who can't appreciate that effort 'should reorganize their values,'" she viciously threw my words back in my face.

Losing in anything is unforgivable. Yet, that day, I lost pathetically in an argument to that girl.

After the longest speech I ever heard her say (even her opening speech at the beginning of the school year was shorter than that), she turned to my parents, bowed, said "Thank you for the meal. I am sorry for the intrusion. I will take my leave now," and immediately left the table. I was frozen stiff to my seat, but could hear her grab her jacket and shoes from the hallway and run out the door.

_So much for not making a commotion_, I thought wearily.

"Genichirou, you overdid it." My grandfather said gently.

"But grandfather…!" I protested, but he held a hand up to stop me.

"We'll leave it at that, my grandson. Make it up to her when you can."

Suddenly, my mother nodded, "Yes, Gen-chan, make sure to. She's a good girl." She paused, and then mused, "But isn't it interesting? She acts just like her name."

This puzzled me. "Mother, what do you mean?"

She smiled and faced me, "You should know, Gen-chan. Her name means the empress child, or noble child, depending on which kanji you take. But either way, it fits her…doesn't it?"

Father slowly nodded his head. "That's true, the way she walks, the way she talks. Her every movement seems proud, yet elegant…just like an empress."

Now _that_ caught me by surprise.

_An empress, huh_…

* * *

><p>Hey all! Yeah, I know it's shorter than Chapter 1, but please forgive me! I'm trying to update as fast as possible, and it's difficult to cram everything in because my brain's on high and my typing is on low.<p>

Anyways, please give me your feedback! As always, yoroshiku—I'm in your hands! Like, or no like, please do tell me! Or PM me!

BIG QUESTION: Is Sanada in character? Or should I adjust it a little?

Ah, and there's the new poll on my profile as well! And please read my other stories too! Aaaah, must write new chapter now! Ok, bye bye! Love and bear hugs for all!

~Hime-chan

P.S. Just for those who don't know me well enough, that's the very hyper version of me when I freak out. Just to let you know. :) Thanks for reading!


	3. Revelations

Hi everyone! Hime-chan here!

Hope you guys all enjoyed Chapter 2 last time! I really appreciate everyone's reviews—they mean the world to me! So thank you so much, and please continue to support me as I will continue to rely on you all!

Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis, only Moriyama Kimiko.

Now, please enjoy my most recent work, Chapter 3 of "The Empress!" Have fun!

And don't forget to review ^^

* * *

><p><span>Regular POV (continuing from Chapter 2)<span>

Kimiko dashed out the door, her hand clasped tightly over her mouth—this time to hold in the tears welling up in her eyes.

Desperately hoping that Sanada wouldn't come after her, she ran as fast as her legs could carry her to the nearest refuge, the local park.

Reaching there, she slowed to a dejected walk, trudging over and collapsing on a wooden bench with a defeated "plop." Placing her head in her hands, she finally allowed the tears that had swelled up in her eyes to run down her cheeks in flowing salty streams. Sobbing quietly, when she felt someone place a gentle hand on her shoulder, she immediately snapped, "Go away."

A low chuckle followed, causing her eyes to widen and her head to snap up. "Oh my god, Seiichi! What are you doing here?"

He simply smiled, saying nothing. Kimiko then realized what she had done, and apologized, crying, "Sorry Seiichi! I didn't know it was you, I thought it was…" her voice trailed off, not wanting to acknowledge the almost-mentioned person.

"…Genichirou?" Yukimura inserted for her.

Kimiko, with her head in her hands again, nodded. "He's such a jerk," she cried. "He completely ridiculed dance."

Yukimura put his arm around his childhood friend to comfort her as much as possible. She sobbed against his shoulder, "So what if he's a kendo and tennis star? Sure, he's recognized by everyone, success surrounds him like moths do to fire…But dancers deserve just as much recognition! If it wasn't because of people like _him_…" she collapsed into tears again.

"Shhh…" Yukimura soothed her. "I know, I know…" he hugged her closer, trying to prevent her from recalling any more bad memories. "That's in the past Kimi-chan, so try to forget. I'm here, ok?"

She nodded mutely again, having buried her face into his tennis jersey.

Yukimura waited until she calmed back down, and then voiced something Kimiko had never even thought of. "Kimi-chan, now stay calm…but have you ever considered that you might be," he paused to find the right word, "…jealous?"

The female next to him immediately pulled away and sat up in shock. "Jealous?"

The tennis captain nodded slowly. "Perhaps…of his success? The recognition that he gets…that _she_ never got? Or…that _you_ never received?"

Kimiko turned away from him. Was it possible?

She traced back to what she had thought of him for the past 3 years.

From when he first joined the tennis team…

To when he received the excellence award for top grades in history…

To when he became vice captain of the tennis regulars…

To when he was dubbed the "Emperor" of the tennis courts…

To when…

She shot up from the bench in a bout of realization. She _was_ jealous. _She_ was the one who was being ridiculous…just because she was angry that she didn't get enough recognition when he got exactly what he deserved for his efforts.

Shoving her head back into her hands, Kimiko moaned in her shame. "Seiichi, I feel like an idiot."

Said boy chuckled. "It's all right, just make it up to him tomorrow at school. It'll work out, so don't worry," he reassured her confidently, patting her on the back: "I'll see you at school. Bye." And with that, he left the girl to think things over.

Kimiko called out after him, "Thank Seiichi!" The tennis captain smiled and waved behind him before briskly strolling away.

* * *

><p><span>Kimiko POV<span>

I'm such a dimwit. Just because I was jealous…

Oh no! I've got to make up for the commotion and trouble I've caused Sanada-…kun and his family. I'll apologize directly to him tomorrow, first thing in the morning.

* * *

><p><span>Regular POV (at Sanada's home)<span>

Sanada thought over what had happened. Sure, he might have "overdone it" as his grandfather had said, but it wasn't his entire fault! She was the one acting all high and mighty, so she should apologize. He growled. If that pompous brat didn't…

The telephone broke into his thoughts.

**Ring ring**

"Sanada residence." He spoke into the receiver.

"Genichirou, is that you?"

"Oh, Seiichi, you again."

"I'm sorry if it's me." The captain huffed jokingly.

His vice captain brushed off the joke. "Anyways, what is it?" Sanada had an odd feeling about what was coming from his old friend.

"Kimi-chan told me about what happened. It seems like you guys got into a fight?"

"…And what about it?" was the curt reply.

"Well, I admit that she wasn't entirely correct, and had her faults for arguing with you. She knows that now…I think. But perhaps you should get the other side of the story as well…her view and what, or rather _who_, caused her to be so adamant about the fundamentals of dancing."

Sanada was intrigued. "Who…you say?"

"Yes." The captain confirmed. "It's a who. It's a _she_, to be specific."

Now the fukubuchou was plain stumped. "What are you talking about?"

"Kimiko's grandmother was a famous dancer in Kyoto…before she married Kimiko's grandfather, Moriyama Ryoutarou—"

"The founder of the Moriyama dojo group," Sanada interrupted, although he was still confused about where this conversation was headed.

"Exactly. She was extremely prolific in teaching and choreography, and was renowned for being one of the best. But after she married Moriyama-san, everything went downhill."

"How's that possible? She could have just continued her dancing right?"

"But now her reputation as a dancer was completely overwhelmed by something else. Everywhere she went, she was addressed as Moriyama's wife, or dojo mistress, always Moriyama this, Moriyama that…never again was she recognized for her own efforts in _dancing_. In fact, some people even ridiculed her by comparing her to her husband's greater success in the martial arts."

Yukimura's last statement was met by a stony silence on the receiving end.

He continued sadly, "And eventually, Kimiko's grandmother died of overworking in the hopes of being recognized for her talents again. That's why Kimi-chan's so touchy and bitter when it comes to recognizing dancers."

The captain paused for a second, recalling that day.

_Flashback_

A little girl sat on the branch of a tree, crying. She had just come back from a certain ceremony, and now her heart felt like it had been wrenched and crushed into two.

Her parents were under the tree, trying to coax their young daughter down from the dangerous place where she was sitting, but to no avail. The little one would not budge a single inch until she could cry no more.

So, she kept crying, until all of a sudden, an unfamiliar face popped up from below her. "Hey there," a boy with smiling eyes greeted her. "What are you doing up here all alone?"

"Grandma's –hiccup- gone…'cause –hiccup- she overworked" the little one sobbed. "She's gone, she's gone, she's gone…" the girl could only repeat those two words over and over again in despair.

And little Yukimura Seiichi, age 10, could do nothing but hold her to his chest until her tears stopped flowing down her pale cheeks.

_Flashback end_

"Genichirou?" the tennis captain ventured.

"Hn."

"What are you thinking…right now?"

"Apology." The vice captain answered stiffly.

"..."

"I'll apologize tomorrow, if you're so curious. She deserves it after what I said to her today." Sanada said a little gruffly.

Yukimura smiled into the phone. "All right, thanks Genichirou. I'll see you at school tomorrow."

"Hn." And with that, the stern emperor hung up.

_I'm counting on you, Genichirou. You might be the one for her_.

Perhaps Yukimura Seiichi saw it coming first.

* * *

><p><span>(the next day)<span>

Her mind set, and her vision cleared, Kimiko danced through the gate the next day, wanting to apologize to the offended boy as soon as possible. "I can do this," she repeated to herself, "I _will_ do this."

Approaching from the other side, Sanada was briskly pacing towards the school gates, hoping to say sorry to her as quickly as possible. With his silent and stern façade, few besides those who knew him well could tell that his eyebrows were less furrowed than usual.

(in the history classroom)

Kimiko sat in the classroom, waiting for Sanada to arrive. _Come on, Sanada. Where are you? Just get your butt in…_

_Oh my god._ Kimiko thought, _what am I doing? Am I anticipating talking to him? Where the heck did my brain go overnight? _

She slapped herself mentally, just as said boy walked proudly (as usual) through the classroom door, his 5'11" frame barely squeezing below the top of the doorpost.

Seeing Sanada walk in, Kimiko scooted over a bit to allow him his allocated room on the bench-seat. "Good morning," she said as normally as possible.

He nodded to her in reply, a little more kindly than usual. "Good morning."

An awkward silence ensued. This time, both of them _wanted_ to say something, but didn't know how to begin. Finally…

"Can I…?" both Sanada and Kimiko began, and then stopped as they realized the other had spoken.

"Go ahead," they tried to tell the other to speak first, but ended up speaking simultaneously again.

"I'M SORRY!" both yelled out in unison…yet AGAIN. They froze, and looked around the classroom to check that there were no other students, glanced at each other…

And subsequently burst out laughing. Yes, even Sanada began chuckling.

Kimiko was again, had collapsed onto the floor in her mirth, yelling out, "Wow, what are we doing?" and had doubled over in amusement at the situation, while Sanada, although he was more controlled, could not help but smile at the irony of today compared to yesterday.

When finally both of them had calmed down, Kimiko decided it was time to ask for forgiveness. "Sanada-kun, I'm sorry for what happened yesterday. I was way too arrogant and stubborn, and I hope you can accept my apology."

* * *

><p><span>Kimiko POV<span>

I bowed deeply, waiting for his answer. A few seconds passed. Silence. Until…

"No, I'm sorry but I cannot."

My head shot upwards, eyes wide, gaze sharp. I gasped, "Why—"

"I cannot accept yours because I want you to accept _my_ apology." The words flew out of his mouth at a rapid tempo, as if he wanted to get it all out there before he forgot. "It was my fault. I was being too proud, and completely disregarded your thinking, even though you had such a good reason behind your view."

My gaze softened, recalling Seiichi's comforting presence beside me yesterday. Knowing Sanada-kun would understand whom I was referring to, I asked, "How much did he tell you? Everything?"

"Enough," was his stoic answer.

"All right then." And then, as if the apologies were completely forgotten, the two of us simply sat there in a comfortable silence, wordlessly enjoying each other's company.

I looked at the clock: 20 minutes before class started. There was enough time to answer something that had been bugging me ever since last night's revelation.

But before I could even ask my question, Sanada-kun asked something else first. "So…you live alone right now?"

"Un (yeah)," I replied. "Mama and Papa went to Germany to help with the rest of the dojo branches, so I'll be staying alone for about a year." I paused, hesitant to reveal what I had been hiding all along. "But, I guess I'm not really alone."

At Sanada-kun's questioning gaze, I explained, "I stay over at my cousin's house more."

"Why?"

"It's empty," I said simply, and then repeating it. "Our house is an empty shell of a home when Mama or Papa isn't there."

I didn't tell him, but the reason why I asked to study at his house was because if the school found out about me living alone, they'd call my parents back to Japan. It was true that I missed them because home wasn't home without them, but they had been so happy when the business had grown enough to extend to Germany…It would break my heart to shatter their dreams because of my own selfishness.

But to my surprise, Sanada-kun didn't push any further. He leaned backwards a bit, contemplating. His curiosity still hung in the air, but he was kind enough to leave it at that. So now, it was my turn.

"Ne, Sanada-kun?" I drawled slightly, facing forwards.

"Hn?"

"Why do you like kendo so much?"

The stoic vice captain kept his silence for a while…I thought he didn't want to tell me, so I waved my hands in front of me, saying "It's ok if you don't want to tell me, I was just kind of curious as to why you would argue—"

"It was the first thing my grandfather ever taught me." He interjected quickly.

_Eh?_ My ears perked up, though I continued to face forward. "Really?"

"Aa. And I suppose it…became a sort of link between us…Perhaps the way dance connected you and your grandmother." Sanada-kun added softly.

I turned towards him. Did I finally have someone who understands how I feel?

And in that instant of understanding, it was as if the cover on my eyes had been blown off, and I was seeing Sanada-kun in a whole another light: his hands, callused from physical work, were folded neatly on the desk, his stern face turned towards the window, and his eyes had this distant look in them…that made him really attractive all of a sudden. I slapped myself mentally for the second time in a day. What was I thinking?

But I smiled nonetheless, as I caught a glimpse of Sanada-kun's mouth also twitching slightly upwards on both corners. We were friends now.

* * *

><p><span>Regular POV (after school)<span>

"Sanada-kun!" Said vice captain turned towards the rising voice in the distance, watching as his new "friend" dashed towards him, her long hair flying behind her like a silky black ribbon fluttering in the wind.

Kimiko comically screeched to a stop in front of her tutor. "Are we going to do any tutoring today?"

Sanada looked at her, confused. Today wasn't a tutoring day. "Well 'cause of what happened, you know…we didn't really finish?" she half-explained-half-asked sheepishly.

The vice captain took in her words and simply nodded, giving the day's schedule a mental once over. He concluded, "I have time today so we can finish what we started, but I do have tennis practice right now, so you'll have to wait."

"Ok!" Kimiko chirped. They walked together towards the tennis courts, Sanada with his gear slung casually over his shoulder, and Kimiko tightly grasping her books and student council materials in her hands and messenger bag.

Now _this _development was occasion for gossip. As they walked along the winding dirt paths to the courts, Kimiko heard the gasps and whispering as they passed groups of students.

"Oh my gosh, is that the prez?" One 3rd year boy said.

"Yeah! Why's she with Sanada?" Another male added.

"Are they dating?" At this Kimiko blushed and put her head down to hide it, and thus missed the amusing fact that Sanada had also pulled his cap down a little farther than usual.

"No way! Really?" "Well, they do look cute together." "Yeah, real couple-like."

"Humph!" Some fangirls interrupted the benevolent gossip. "She's just trying to get on Sanada-sama's good side." They sneered, adding quietly, but loud enough that said class president could hear, "She's such a slut."

Kimiko halted in her steps. She knew walking with the Emperor would raise questions, but this? _Sanada-kun's good side? Slut?_ She thought, horrified. _Wha-what on earth?_

Sanada had noticed his walking partner had frozen mid-step, and turned around to scold her for being slow, when he saw the look on her face, which almost matched that of when he insulted dancing in front of her. Taking a step towards her to inquire, he caught the last few words his fangirls spat at his new friend: "…such a slut."

He immediately connected it with Kimiko's upset expression. Knowing what was going on now, but reluctant to make a stir about it, he dragged her along, "Come on," he said, "Forget about them."

She snapped out of her trance, somewhat, and lugged her feet back into pace with him, but stayed moodily mute for the rest of the walk.

When they reached the courts, Sanada set his things down on the ground near the court fence and faced his "student." "Moriyama, don't even think about what they said. You have been doing what you need to do; that's all and everything. So just forget about them. Focus on what's right."

She nodded blankly, like a robot that had been programmed to say yes to everything and anything.

Sanada sighed, resignedly. "All right; I have practice for an hour, so until then, watch there—" he pointed at the courts, "Or here—you choose."

Kimiko replied immediately, having regained some spirit. "I'm going with you," she said decisively.

"Aa. Come on then." As much as he didn't want to admit it, Sanada was glad she had chosen to watch from a close range. He hoped to be able to keep an eye on the girl as much as possible.

They walked onto the courts together, the school's most unusual pair attracting more attention as Sanada brought Kimiko to greet the other Rikkaidai tennis stars.

* * *

><p><span>Sanada POV<span>

Moriyama strolled next to me, her step seeming to have lightened from before (when I heard the fans call her that repulsive word).

Reaching the group, I greeted the two other sankyo (A/N: the Japanese term for 3 Demons). "Seiichi, Renji."

"Genichirou," they nodded in reply.

And then all eyes turned towards the unexpected guest at my side. Slightly uncomfortable, she shifted a couple steps over so she was half-hidden behind my back, avoiding the obvious, disconcertingly curious stares of Marui, Akaya, and Niou.

"Oi, you three," I glared at the three troublemakers. "Stop scaring her."

Akaya and Niou immediately shrilled, "Is she your girlfriend, fukubuchou?"

Oh, that was the _last_straw. "100 laps around the courts, Akaya!" I yelled. Shocked, he yelped, "What?"

"And Niou! 100 for you, too!"

"Hai, hai" he knew there were times when not to mess with me. This was definitely one of those times.

As those three monkeys dashed off to do their punishing laps, I turned back to face said terrorized girl. "You all right?"

She had her eyes wide, and hand clasped over her mouth again. How many times had I seen this face? I panicked, trying to find a way to comfort her, when all of a sudden, "BAHAHAHAH!" exploded from her mouth.

(A/N: So much for terrorized… -_-")

Taken aback by the reaction which had been opposite of my expectation, I took a step backwards, towards my two friends. They came onto my right and left side, and we observed the rest of the group as well as a doubled-over Moriyama, who was laughing so hard that tears of mirth had welled up in her eyes. Just what was so amusing?

On the other hand, Jackal, Yagyuu, and Marui were staring at her with wide eyes. I suppose they didn't know what to make of that slim girl who came with me, walked with me, hid behind my back, and now was laughing at what seemed to be…oh right, me.

Finally, Seiichi stepped in. "Kimi-chan, get up. They're waiting."

"Oh!" she straightened, and while her eyes were still shining with laughter, she bowed and courteously greeted the remaining three and Renji, "Konnichiwa. I'm Moriyama Kimiko. Thank you for having me here today." She addressed each by their name, "Yanagi-san, Yagyuu-san, Marui-san, Kuwahara-kun."

Something flashed through me when she addressed Jackal with the familiar honorific, the same one she addressed me with, but I shoved it down. Practice was more important right now.

By this time, Niou and Akaya had dragged themselves back to the courts, and after a quick re-introduction, practice began.

I situated Moriyama on the coach's bench next to the referee chair. "Stay here. And keep your eye on the ball so you don't get a concussion," recalling what had happened when Tezuka's girlfriend had sat next to the courts when we had a street tennis match a month ago. _That_ was a disaster.

She nodded like she knew exactly what I meant. "I know. My cousin's girlfriend had that happen to her, just 'cause she wasn't watching the ball."

_Her cousin? His girlfriend?_

She grinned at me, and gave me a salute sign. "But I'll be careful, yes, sir!"

I rolled my eyes, shrugging off the unspoken question I had before. It was probably just my imagination going wild. "Aa," I replied, "Now stay put." With that, time for me to start on my already delayed practice.

* * *

><p><span>Regular POV<span>

Kimiko watched in wonder as she saw the talent and hard work of the Rikkai tennis team unravel before her very eyes. Recalling the fan girls' words, she snickered, despite her original unhappiness. _Surely, they would kill for this spot to watch in_, she thought to herself. Then checking her meanness, she locked that thought into the back of her mind. It was one thing to tolerate someone else's bad intentions, but entirely another to hypocritically display the same nastiness.

(on the courts)

Sanada worked as hard as usual, perhaps even more so. Every so often, however, he snuck a glance at the guest sitting not twenty feet from him, just to make sure. And of course, nothing escapes the eyes of his two friends.

Yukimura and Renji called a quick break, before heading over to where Sanada was. "Hey, Genichirou," they both called.

"Aa. Something happen?"

Renji looked slyly over to Kimiko before turning his gaze back on Sanada. "Oh no…except that a certain someone is looking at another certain someone…"

Sanada pulled his cap down. "I don't know what you're talking about, Renji." He yelled out to the rest of the regulars, "Break's up, let's continue!" and he walked away.

Yukimura and Renji grinned, with the data specialist giving the captain the probability: "69.8% there's something going on already, 89.4% they'll develop an official relationship soon, and 100%..." he whispered the final piece of data in the captain's ear, the secret causing Yukimura's grin to widen even more.

"Thanks, Renji, I'll keep that in mind."

(half an hour later)

And then, just like that, the practice was over. Kimiko bounded over to Sanada, asking, "So are we going now?" confusing everybody in the vicinity except for the 3 demons, who had been informed ahead of time.

The stern captain nodded. "You ready?"

"Yup!"

The two began walking off, but not before Kimiko walked back to Yukimura and hugged him around the stomach, shocking everybody on the court. "Thanks, Seiichi."

"Mhm." The captain hummed quietly in a pleasant response. Knowing it was his way of showing approval, Kimiko bounded off again to a waiting Sanada.

Yukimura and Yanagi stood together, watching as the odd pair walked off. "They're quite something, aren't they?" Yukimura chuckled.

"Aa. Ii data," was all Yanagi mumbled as he scribbled down random notes in his notebook.

Yukimura chuckled again. _100% he'll love her…huh_.

Perhaps Yanagi Renji saw it coming second.

* * *

><p><span>Kimiko POV (after tutoring had ended)<span>

Finally, we had finished the session. Sanada-kun was quite patient with me, although, if I must say so myself, I understood the concepts faster than expected.

He walked me home, like a gentleman. Even though he was far from Yagyuu-san, whom I've interacted with before, he was close, in his own stern, gruff way.

So I plopped onto my bed and immediately fell asleep from all the things that had happened today. Forget the fangirls. Remember the tennis. And then…just sleep.

(fast forward a month)

So things continued like that for a consecutive four weeks: we definitely had sessions on Wednesday and the weekends, and sometimes I'd stay for dinner or lunch. Sometimes he'd walk me to the student council room or I'd go to watch his practice, just for kicks. Of course, eventually, the team got used to me being there, so it wasn't as terrorizing or amusing as before, but still it was nevertheless fascinating to be there as all that talent glowed before me. Seiichi was incredible…but Sanada-kun's was even more so.

And, just between me and myself, I felt that over this past month, a certain something had been growing inside me. Over time, I began noticing how cool Sanada-kun was with his teammates, his dignified and special style of tennis, the way he walked, and how his facial expressions and deep eyes could tell me everything despite the offhand façade he kept on when at school.

Because I began to understand, that under the mask, he was simply living up to expectations from his family, his teachers, and perhaps even schoolmates like me. In reality, surely, he was really like any other teenage boy—something I had obviously failed to realize when I first talked to him.

However, at one point, said "something" began to cause a huge turmoil inside me. What was this? I didn't _want_ to blush every time Sanada praised me (in his gruff voice of course). I didn't _want_ to get hooked to his every movement and sentence. And yet, I was falling into this bottomless pit of fixation, right where I _didn't_ want to be.

So I called my childhood buddy out one day and asked him what on earth was going on. Desperately, I explained my feelings and the past month. When I was done, I was expecting a full-fledged answer that would clear up all this confusion, but instead…

Seiichi burst out laughing. At my bewilderment or at my facial expression or at god-knows-what I had no clue. All I knew was that I was annoyed. Seriously.

"Seiichi, stop laughing!"

"Ahaha—gomen, gomen, but—ha—Kimi-chan, you really—ha—don't know what's—haha—wrong?"

"Of course not. All I know is that this is getting bothersome, and I want to get rid of it, or do _something_ about whatever it is!" I vented, frustrated.

Seiichi chuckled again. "It's so obvious, Kimi-chan."

"No it's not."

"You're in love, my little princess."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"WHAT?"

* * *

><p>Hey all! Ok, I've been writing like a whirlwind for the past day. Thank god exam weeks don't include me for now! **does a mini dance**<p>

Anyways, same thing as always, PLEASE REVIEW OR ALERT OR FAVORITE OR SOMETHING!

Thank you to everyone who contacted me in some way to show they liked my story. Ah, and thanks to Lone Panda and Janeryoma especially for mentioning some conflicting parts. I'll be in your hands for this chapter too, so please notify me if the same thing occurs! THANKS!

Remember, I love you all and appreciate all of your guys' time!

Please continue to support me on my way! Chapter 4 is coming up! (Btw, you guys can always tell me how you want the story to go…don't hesitate to tell me anything, oh anything at all! I'm completely open to everything! ^^ I'd like to keep Sanada in character, too, so that's another thing to mention if you give me a review, pretty please? THANKS!)

OK, that's it for today! Hope you enjoyed Chapter 3! Her "mystery" cousin will show up soon, don't worry! :) (Although I'm sure many of you have already figured out who it is. xD)

With love and bear hugs,

~Hime-chan


	4. Hidden Feelings

Hi there! Hime-chan here again!

Hope you all enjoyed reading Chapter 3; I definitely loved all the reviews that came in! Thank you to everyone who reviewed: Alpha14, Lone Panda, chillybean, janeryoma, celtic27fionn, PurePrincess, and ksm013.

A special shout out to my good friend Vesper Rin Lynd—I'll do my best! 私、がんばるから！

So I'm glad that the misconceptions in Chapters 1 and 2 were cleared up through Chapter 3. If anything of the like comes up again in this chapter, please PLEASE tell me so I can fix it ASAP!

To ksm013: I will take up your "challenge" and try to keep it at 3rd person this chapter. Hopefully you will enjoy my attempt! Thank you for your comments!

I love all of you, and appreciate your time and support! Please continue to help me along my way (i.e. PRETTY PLEASE REVIEW!); I'm in your hands! Yoroshiku!

Disclaimer: I only own Moriyama Kimiko, not the Prince of Tennis anime/manga. If you wish to use my OC, please contact me personally. I've put in a lot of thought to think her up—please do not use her as you please without informing me beforehand.

Now, I proudly present to you, a slightly delayed, but with lots of love and effort, update: Chapter 4 of The Empress! ENJOY! 3

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><p><span>Regular POV<span>

**Ding ding** The first bell of the day rang, signaling the 1st period's start.

It was a normal day: birds singing sweetly, the sun was out, students filing in noisily and happily, sitting down in their normal seats.

Yet, something was out of the norm, a certain stoic vice captain noticed as he walked over to sit down beside his seatmate.

Observing her cursorily, Sanada saw that Kimiko had her chin in her hand, leaning on her elbow while staring blankly out the window. It was rare for the class president to zone out like that, Sanada mused, wondering if something had happened with his "student."

Kimiko jumped, slightly startled, as Sanada sat down with a slight thump, notifying her of his presence.

"Ohayou," the tennis emperor said casually.

"Ah, o-ohayou," Kimiko replied, stumbling slightly over her greeting. She slapped herself mentally for the infinite time. What's wrong with me, she groaned.

Sanada noticed her obvious discomfort, and asked concernedly, "Hey, you all right?"

His seatmate, knowing that the boy was now aware of her abnormal actions, put on her regular cold façade that she showed to everyone else, dismissing it offhandedly, "Yeah, I'm fine. What could possibly be wrong?"

Sanada scrutinized her for a while, silently, almost until he drove Kimiko mad, when he simply shrugged and let her off for a bit, "All right then," and turned to face the board as their history teacher walked in…or, was supposed to walk in.

Both Kimiko's and Sanada's ears perked up, slightly intrigued when they heard a voice that was not that of their history teacher's. Facing forward, backs straight, eyes and ears attentive, they saw someone completely different than their young male instructor. Instead, in his place stood a white-haired, hobbling, but all-smiles granny-like elderly woman.

"Good morning, everyone." The lady croaked out shakily in her high-pitched, spindly voice. "I'll be subbing for your teacher today as he is out sick."

A slight groan of dismay resounded from the back of the room, as all the students were quite fond of their original teacher. The sub opened her mouth to say something, changed her mind and closed her mouth, and then quickly announced, "Actually, today will be a self-study hall. Please use your time wisely." And with that, she scooched out the door, hobbling off as fast as she could.

Kimiko and Sanada looked at each other, confusion clouding their eyes. Then, they simultaneously burst out in laughter (Kimiko) and quiet chuckles (Sanada).

"Did you see the way she got out of the classroom? It was as if she was afraid of us!" Kimiko couldn't smother the mirth that showed quite obviously on her beaming face.

Sanada, by this time, had calmed down and returned to his usual flat-mouthed self, but the amusement still twinkled in his eyes as he observed Kimiko's laughing figure. _I guess she's back to normal_, he sighed in relief. Wait, relief?

He checked himself. She was just his student…he had no duty to care about her personally. The tennis practice schedule this afternoon was certainly more important…he busied himself with scribbling down in his neat handwriting the practice matches he had planned out in his head that morning.

The rest of the period passed relatively uneventfully, and essentially completely silently. Kimiko simply sat and stared out the window while Sanada worked on paperwork for the team.

At the ringing of the bell signaling the end of the first period and everyone's movement to leave the classroom, Kimiko yanked lightly on Sanada's sleeve and asked with a carefully expressionless face, "So, after school today?"

Sanada looked at her, thinking for a while, and then replied, "An hour later today. Seiichi announced another sudden tennis practice this morning."

_Ah, that's right_, Kimiko reminded herself. _Seiichi _did _say Nationals were coming up…_

The usually stern vice captain interrupted her thoughts with a hesitant, "Do you…?"

"Yes?"

"Would you…like to come to watch?" was his cautious query.

At first, Kimiko was taken aback. It was a usual thing for her to wait for Sanada to finish practice, but for him to ask her personally today…it made things, maybe just a little, different. "Of course," she replied indifferently, and then turned to go, quickly walking out the door, leaving Sanada puzzling over her attitude today.

As Kimiko walked away into the school hallway, only a close observer would have noticed…that with her bangs hanging over her cheeks and hiding her eyes, our cool class president had the slightest hint of a smile playing on her lips.

(after school)

"Yo, Renji, Genichirou!" Yukimura jogged over to the said vice captain, who was already accompanied by the team's data specialist.

They nodded in reply, Yanagi greeting back, "Seiichi."

Sanada squinted slightly, his eyebrows furrowing a bit as he caught sight of a group of people nearing the courts. He counted off in his head, Niou. Marui. Jackal. Akaya. Yagyuu trailed closely behind them.

…And squished amongst them was a certain class president the rest of the team was dragging her along with them. They had gotten very close over the past month or so, and were often into playfully moving her (literally) to the courts. Kimiko's long silky hair streaming in the light breeze, a slight pinkish hue dotted her cheeks as she good-humoredly struggled to regain her freedom.

Yukimura and Renji looked at each other. Sanada was looking awfully long at the group, considering his strong eyesight. But then they caught sight of Kimiko and looked at each other again, this time grinning mischievously. Something interesting was happening…

Scooting inconspicuously closer to the left and right of "emperor," the two glanced at his face, and were surprised at what they found, even considering their high expectations.

Sanada's face was the usual stiff, unchanged slight frown. Yet as his gaze was trained on Kimiko, his eyes shone with a certain…gentleness? The captain and data player nudged Sanada in his right and left side, "Is someone attracted to our princess?" Yukimura teased.

Sanada coughed, the warmth in his eyes immediately disappearing, and a slight rush of heat flew across his cheeks for a split second, which he ignored of course, before he recovered and scoffed to Yukimura, "Of course not."

Renji raised an eyebrow.

"In any case, we have practice to attend to. Let's go," Sanada quickly strode off to apprehend the rest of the group and free his "student" from their grasps.

Yukimura and Renji chuckled and walked after him. He had a long way to go, didn't he…

(during tutoring)

Having decided to take a small break, Kimiko proceeded to tell an as-usual-silent Sanada about what had happened during the volleyball unit of their PE class.

"See, Sanada-kun, so the girl next to me, she wouldn't let me at the ball, you know? So I just…" she continued chattering happily to Sanada, who she knew was listening by the way his body was turned slightly towards her as he worked on his own homework.

A slight knock interrupted a laughing fit from the class president, who immediately sat up cross-legged from her place on the floor where she had been rolling in mirth.

"Gen-chan? Phone call for you!" Sanada's mother spoke through the thin door of the room.

"Aa, I'm coming right now." Standing up, he looked down at the still-sitting Kimiko and said, "I'll be right back." After seeing her nod in affirmation, he opened the door and slipped into the hallway, leaving Kimiko to amuse herself for the next few minutes.

(in the hallway)

"Hai. Sanada Genichirou speaking."

"Ah, Sanada-kun."

"Sensei? Is something wrong?" What was he calling at this hour for?

"I have something to speak to you about tomorrow. Please come talk to me half an hour early before first period."

"Is something wrong?" the vice captain repeated.

"Oh no! Just…something." Perhaps it was his imagination, but Sanada swore he could detect a hint of cheerful secrecy in the teacher's enigmatic statement.

"Hah…" Sanada was unsure of what to say now.

"In any case, I will see you bright and early tomorrow morning. Good night, Sanada-kun."

"Oyasuminasai, sensei." With that, his teacher hung up.

Sanada placed the phone back to its place on the receiver, completely befuddled about what had just happened and what was to come. _Just what does he want to talk about so early tomorrow morning?_ (Waking up early wasn't the problem; he would have to miss some tennis practice to make it though, and that irked him.)

Sanada walked back to his room, continuing to internally contemplate the entire time.

(back in his room)

"Sanada-kun?" No response.

"Sanada-kun?" A slight twitch of the eyebrows.

"OI SANADA-KUN!"

"Aa," the vice captain jumped just slightly. "What is it?" He asked, annoyed by the volume of Kimiko's voice.

"What's wrong? You've been zoning out since you came back from that phone call." Worried, she reached out a tentative hand and placed it on his forehead. "You all right?"

Sanada reflexively moved slightly backwards from her hand, thinking for the shortest moment, _Her hand is so soft._ "Aa, nothing's wrong. Sensei just has to tell me something tomorrow before class."

"Oh…" she relaxed a bit and smiled, "All right then." _I guess I'll leave it at that. He doesn't seem to want to talk about it._

Sanada seemed to appreciate her holding back her questions, because he threw a small nod of thanks in her direction. "I think we're done for today. You can come over tomorrow, too, after school, as it's a Saturday school day."

"Ok!" Kimiko piped cheerily. "See you then! I'll see myself out!" She bounced happily out the room, and Sanada could hear her humming happily while going down the stairs and greeting his family goodbye. He raised an eyebrow—had something happened? She seemed really upbeat, even more than usual when she was around him and let her cold façade down.

He stood up and stretched. In any case, he should go to sleep. He would see her tomorrow—maybe she would tell him if he asked her.

He slipped under the blanket and turned the lamp off, immediately falling asleep.

Little did he know what awaited him tomorrow.

(the next day at school)

Sanada walked in through the school gates, striding quickly in the direction of the tennis courts. Seiichi was pushing all of the regulars to the limit before Nationals, and he knew what he would get if he, as vice captain of the entire team, was late.

Yet, his good intentions were immediately flattened as he was bombarded with hundreds of rabid fan girls as soon as he walked past the metal fences.

"SANADA-SAMA! PLEASE GO OUT WITH ME!"

A brutal shove to the side. "NO HE'S MINE! SANADA-SENPAI, PLEASE! TAKE THESE!"

Another push and a shove. "NO TAKE THESE!"

And et cetera, et cetera. Sanada was taken aback by the ferocity of the school's female population that was surrounding him at the moment. Sure, he had to face the occasional one or two during classes and fend them off by holding them at arms' length or ignoring them, but this was an unprecedented record. What was up with all of them today?

In any case, he had to go. Squeezing past and doing his best to push them off without severely injuring them, he quickly ran off towards the courts, where his fans knew better than to go on. One step meant possible hatred from the regular members, and possible expulsion from a school that values tennis over grades.

So they hung back, waiting for their chances to pounce on their targeted, "unsuspecting" regulars.

(practice is almost done)

"Seiichi, could you do me a favor?" Yukimura turned to Sanada questioningly, and then noticed his fans, and grinned understandingly.

"You need a decoy?"

Sanada gave a sigh of frustration. "I wish there was another me to distract 'them,'" he jerked his thumb towards the group of drooling females outside the fence, "but as there isn't, and I have to talk to one of my teachers right about _now_…" he trailed off.

As he expected, Yukimura picked up quickly on what he needed. "All right, just go from the back gate. I don't think they know about that one. The rest of us will somehow cope here."

Seeing the gleam in his friend's eyes, Sanada felt just a bit sorry for the rest of the regulars. Whatever Yukimura had in mind, it didn't seem they would fare well.

But that couldn't be helped. He was admittedly more curious about what his sensei had to say. Looking at his watch, he realized he was almost late, and rushed off, leaving the questioning regulars to their fate.

"Saa," Yukimura grinned, "Let us go to valiantly rid Genichirou of his rabid fans!"

The regulars shrank back in apprehension. A collective _Oh no…_ ran through all of their heads at the same time. They were in for it this time. If their sixth Yukimura-buchou sense was tingling the right way, _they_ were going to be the sacrificial lambs for fukubuchou's nutty fan(atic)s.

(at the history classroom for first period)

Walking rather slowly (for Sanada anyways) to his history classroom, he trudged to the open door and was immediately met by Kimiko, who seemed to be waiting on purpose for him. "Sanada-kun, you're almost late. Come on, sensei's back, so let's sit now." She tugged playfully on his sleeve, hoping to elicit the usual spark of amusement in his eyes.

But Sanada could only manage a failed attempt to smile; his eyes told the truth. "Moriyama, I have something to tell you after school today."

Kimiko's bright smile faltered at the seriousness she saw in his eyes and heard in his voice. "O-ok…"

With that, Sanada abruptly turned to the board, effectively ending their conversation, and Kimiko could only ponder exactly what could have happened. What could he possibly need to tell her after school and not now?

Well, she would learn soon enough.

(after school)

"Sanada-kun!" Kimiko cried happily, her melodic voice carrying through the air to said boy's ears.

He turned to her, again seeing her fly towards him, hair streaming and bag flying behind her.

She stopped in front of him again, screeching to a comic halt. "So, you needed to tell me something?" she asked cheerfully.

"Aa," he affirmed.

Kimiko smiled, "I do, too." Sanada looked at her, but she gestured for him to proceed, "But you tell first," and she patiently waited for him to speak.

And then he spilled the beans. "I will no longer be tutoring you from now on."

She inhaled sharply, telling Sanada that she was more than surprised.

Sanada nodded again, and the memories of that morning rewinded in his mind.

**-Flashback—**

_Sanada opened the sliding door quickly, bowing brusquely to his teacher, "Ohayou gozaimasu." _

"_Ah, Sanada-kun. Right on time. Come, come." His teacher happily gestured for him to close the door and come closer to his desk. _

"?" _Sanada was puzzled, but did as he was told. Moving closer to his math teacher's desk and looking downwards, he noticed that the entire desk was filled with Kimiko's papers. Questioningly, he gazed back up, "What is the meaning of this?" _

"_I'm extremely pleased with your work with Moriyama-san. Her grade has returned to being acceptable. In fact, more than acceptable, it's an A+." Sanada was stunned. Was he kidding?_

"_As I am now hopeful she can keep this pace until the end of the year, you no longer will have to tutor her." At this, Sanada felt something snap in him, but shoved it down. He should be happy; she had been a nuisance, and it only took up his time. Now he could concentrate solely on tennis. _

"_Thank you for all your hard work, Sanada-kun. Gokurou." _

"_No, it was not a problem. Now, if you will excuse me." Sanada stiffly bowed and quickly strolled out the classroom door, his teacher smiling contentedly all the while. _What a wonderful student…

**-Flashback end—**

"So there you have it." Sanada ended the narration. Kimiko was smiling…But her oddly cold, and slightly sad, grin found a piercing way to even Sanada's heart, and to change the topic, he said, "You had something to tell me, as well?"

He looked at Kimiko's expression, and immediately wondered if he shouldn't have asked her. He had seen her white with shock, pink with laughter, red with embarrassment…but this was downright black.

Her face was completely dark in terms of the aura, and even Sanada was surprised by the extremity of her gloom. He saw her twist her right hand behind her back, as if to hide something, and she forced herself to smile.

"Oh no, it was nothing after all."

Sanada raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure?" He reprimanded himself for asking a second time—what was he possibly expecting?

She nodded in reply. An awkward silence ensued, unease surrounding the two.

Sanada cleared his throat and spoke, "Well then, I guess this is it. We don't have anything to do with each other anymore."

Kimiko tensed, and then bit out a terse "Right." With that, she spun on her heel and ran. Sanada was about to call her as she took off, but she disappeared too quickly.

Catching himself gazing after her disappearing figure, he coughed and turned to go the opposite way. _This was what she wanted. She needed better grades; she got better grades. No more, no less. It's exactly what I wanted, too. _

But somehow he couldn't shake off that feeling of regret. Was that really all he had expected?

(somewhere far far away in the suburbs of Tokyo)

Kimiko pressed furiously on the doorbell through her drying tears, praying fervently to God he would be here.

"Please, please, please Kami-sama, let him be at home and open the door!"

Her prayers were answered.

The door swung open, and in response, Kimiko flung herself and latched onto the familiar and somewhat-welcoming face, shouting gratefully, "Mitsu-kun!"

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><p>Ok, PLEASE DON'T KILL ME! I know this chapter was probably the most confusing and worst one yet—don't hesitate to tell me how or where, 'cause all I know is that it was <em>horrible<em>. Not counting the fact that Kimiko and Sanada are fighting AGAIN. I had to rewrite it 6 times and it's still like this! Urgh… I'm very sorry if it was painful to read, I tried my best.

So, the regular drill—PLEASE REVIEW or any of the alerts/favorites please! Thank you everyone, esp. the people I mentioned in the beginning of this chapter! I love you all!

Hope to update soon for all of you, and bear hugs for all my readers!

~Hime-chan


	5. Awakening of the Rock

Hiya there! Hime-chan here again! Hope you all enjoyed Chapter 4!

If you thought that one wasn't that great, believe me, this one was even harder to write. The ideas aren't coming! Ok, well, I take that back. The ideas are there, but my writing skills are going "poof"!

All right, I'm done sulking. Thank you to everyone who reviewed and alerted and favorited! I'm touched by everyone's encouragement—if it wasn't for you guys, I definitely wouldn't still be here because I wouldn't know what to do with myself.

Note to **ksm013**: I tried not to put too many setting parentheses, but I couldn't help putting in one or two. I did my best, so please keep that in mind. Also, the reason why I use Japanese is because I originally picture the Japanese dialogue in my head and slightly translate it back into English, therefore, if you wish, I will put a mini-translation corner for those who do not understand, but I personally believe it is more realistic for me to put in the Japanese. Hope you understand where I want to go with this.

よし！がんばるぞ！！I'm extremely delighted to present to you, Chapter 5 of The Empress! Please do enjoy and REVIEW! ^^ Love you all!

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><p><span>(at a certain house in a certain suburb in a certain city)<span>

Kimiko was seated at a very traditional looking Japanese table, looking abashedly down at her twiddling thumbs.

The glasses-eyed boy across from the girl gazed at her, unwaveringly. "Now, Kimiko, what did I say-?"

"I know, I know! I'm sorry," Kimiko interrupted, apologizing hurriedly.

But the boy continued as if he hadn't heard her, "—about displays of affection in public? Moreover, in broad daylight?"

The girl looked down again, sheepishly. "'Don't do it,' right?"

"Exactly."

Kimiko looked back up at her cousin, pleading with her puppy dog pout. "I'm sorry, Mitsu-kun." She averted her gaze from his searching one, hesitantly adding. "I was just kind of, you know…out of it."

Tezuka Kunimitsu (captain of the Seigaku tennis team, third year at said school, student council president, and cousin of Moriyama Kimiko) softened his stern gaze and patted his knee lightly, "Come here, little one."

She picked herself up and trudged over to sit next to her very mature-looking cousin, pouting through her impending tears, "I'm only three months younger than you, you know."

And finally, she broke down, the wall of cheerfulness shattering all at once. With her hands gripping his school shirt and her face buried into it, the salty rivers began to flow down her cheeks, soaking into the male's top. Tezuka simply held her close, petting her head, nodding, "Yeah…I know." And so, the two close friends and cousins stayed like that until Kimiko's tears had finally dried.

When she finally stopped crying, Kimiko slowly straightened up, pondering something. "Mitsu-kun?"

"Hn?"

"You know, I realized today that you act less like a social recluse when you're around me. Why is that?"

Tezuka stared at her blankly for a second. Then, realizing what she was implying, bonked her on the head and scolded her, "That was completely unnecessary, Kimiko."

Said girl stuck out her tongue at her favorite cousin and grinned impishly.

"So, what happened?" Tezuka suddenly asked.

Kimiko immediately went silent again, indicating to Tezuka that he had hit an extremely delicate topic. In all the years he had known her, this was possibly one of the most down faces he had ever seen her make. The last time was…when her grandmother passed away—when he met her for the first time.

But at that time, Tezuka recalled, Yukimura had appeared and coaxed her down from the tree. He had trusted the now Rikkaidai tennis captain to take care of her…surely he hadn't let him down. The glasses-eyed male knew the blue-haired Rikkai captain cared just as much as he did about Kimiko. So exactly what…?

"Ne…Mitsu-kun?" Kimiko tentatively asked, interrupting her cousin's confused thoughts.

Tezuka turned to her, "Yes?"

"Have you ever fallen in love?"

Surprised silence. "…No." _Could it possibly be…?_ "Why do you ask?"

"I have." Kimiko smiled sadly, straining to bring back her usual sunny grin, but failing to do so in her misery.

"Is that why…" _you came to my house for the first time in ages, hugged me while crying, and are acting so depressed?_ Tezuka simply let his question hang in the air, knowing that Kimiko would understand what he wanted to ask but did not want to say out loud.

"…Y-yeah…"

"What happened? Tell me." Tezuka had no intention of a busybody, nor did he particularly care about Kimiko's choice of boyfriend…if she was happy about it. Now that she came to him crying like this, something had to be seriously wrong, and he was going to fix it. His uptight captain-self didn't want to admit it…but a strong, considerate, and responsible girl like her deserved happiness.

Kimiko breathed in shakily. "Do you remember what day it is today?"

Tezuka raised an eyebrow. "…Is it a special day?"

Kimiko smacked her forehead with her hand in exasperation. "It's Valentine's Day, you dummy!"

The captain stiffened at being called a dummy, but let her off just this once to humor her. "All right, and…" Realization hit him. "Did he…say no?"

"Kind of."

Something bugged Tezuka. Had he forgotten to ask something? Rewinding the conversation a bit, he realized he hadn't even asked the most basic question. "Do I know this special guy?"

"You might know him, I don't know. He's a tennis freak."

Tezuka's interest was slightly piqued. A tennis player?

"His name's Sanada Genichirou." Kimiko looked up to gauge Tezuka's reaction, and was surprised to see a rare countenance displaying shock and amusement mixed together.

"Mitsu-kun?"

"Is that Sanada you're talking about…always wearing a cap and relatively tall, about my height?"

"Yeah." Kimiko answered on reflex, and then realized what was going on and groaned, "Oh my god, do you _really_ know him?"

"…" His silence told her everything she needed to know. And caused her to once again groan and shove her head into her hands.

"…Let's get back on track." Tezuka adjusted his glasses and reverted back to the original topic. "What happened, exactly?"

Kimiko was now twiddling her thumbs again. "Well, see, my math grades kinda went down 'cause of student council things."

"Kimiko…" Tezuka started warningly.

"Wait. Let me finish. And Sanada was assigned by sensei to tutor me."

"…" This time Tezuka's silence pushed Kimiko to keep talking.

"And so we've been having sessions pretty often at his house…And somewhere along the way…I guess I just fell for him." Kimiko shrugged in defeat.

_So the reason why she didn't come here much anymore…was because she felt like she finally had someone on her side…even in that big house all by herself…_ "And then today?" Tezuka nudged her a little to keep explaining, wanting to understand the situation fully in order to help his cousin.

"And today, Genichirou—er, Sanada—" Tezuka raised an eyebrow at the familiar address, but let her keep going.

"Sanada told me that we were no longer to have tutoring sessions anymore, and we had no reason to see each other anymore. Today, of all days." Kimiko scoffed humorlessly at the irony of the timing.

"…I see. And you came rushing here?"

"I even had chocolates for him, being the idiot I was." Kimiko's eyes were starting to get wet again, but she rubbed the tears away furiously, not wanting to bother Tezuka again. Tossing the chocolates onto the table, she let the stoic captain see for himself the efforts she had put into it. And he _did _see.

Never had Kimiko ever made homemade sweets for someone…not even him…Tezuka knew that his cousin had fallen in love for real…but she couldn't rely on anyone to get back up, except for Sanada. If she couldn't resolve this with him, nothing would ever heal, and nothing would ever move on from this point.

Tezuka neatly replaced the cover of the box and put it back into Kimiko's hands, closing her fingers around it to make sure she took it back. "Keep it for now," was all he said.

Kimiko opened her mouth to say something, but the house door opened and Tezuka's mother called out, "I'm back, Kunimitsu!"

"Welcome back, Mother."

"Good to be back," the woman walked over to him and smiled. "Oh! Kimiko-chan, haven't seen you in a while!" She bent down to hug the girl, who returned the favor.

"Will you eat dinner with us tonight?" Tezuka's mother asked kindly.

"Oh no, that'd be imposing on—" Kimiko began.

"Yes, she will be." Tezuka interrupted, hushing her with his insistent gaze.

His mother looked at the two of them, shrugged, "OK," and hustled into the kitchen with the groceries, whistling a light tune.

"Mitsu-kun!" Kimiko hissed.

"No. You will be staying here until everything settles down."

"But I don't _know_ when that is!" The girl whined.

"You've lived here before; my parents understand what's going on, and I don't mind your presence either. It's decided."

With that conclusive of a statement, there was no way Kimiko could fight against it. She sighed defeatedly for the nth time today and nodded, "All right. I'm going to go to my room now, ok?" The Tezukas had set a room aside for her in case she came over, so she was begrudgingly accustomed to what she called "imposing" upon them.

Tezuka nodded. Watching her disappear into her room, he relaxed a little more inside. He could keep an eye on her situation if she was nearby every day.

As he stood up and began walking away from the dining table, when Kimiko poked her head out of her room. "Ah, Mitsu-kun?"

Turning around, he replied, "Hn?"

"Arigatou," she said with a sweet smile on her face. _Thank you, really_.

Her stoic cousin nodded, silently replying to her with a ghost of a smile playing across his lips. _You're welcome_.

After Kimiko slipped back into her room, Tezuka thought of something, and immediately stalked down the hallway to the household phone. He had a call to make. Walking over to the phone, he took out a notebook in his pocket, flipped through a couple pages, and then dialed a certain number. Putting the receiver to his ear, he waited for a couple dial tones before the person on the other end picked up.

"****** residence." (A/N: Can you guess who? The answer's in the rest of the chapter. ^_^)

"Good evening. Tezuka speaking."

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><p>Sanada and Kimiko hadn't spoken for two days already, and something just kept bugging the vice captain.<p>

But being the rock he was, he shoved the feeling down and kept up his usual tennis practices. Everything was normal. Everything was fine. Nothing had ever changed. And he liked it that way…probably.

From a position about ten feet from the courts, Yukimura and Yanagi looked over at the emperor, watching him as he continuously hit the same place on the wall over and over again. An outsider wouldn't know…and maybe not even the rest of the regulars…but those two knew: Sanada wasn't happy at _all_.

"Genichirou!" Yukimura called out his friend's name to stop the vice captain from drilling a hole into the wall. (A/N: Trust me, considering the guy's strength, it's pretty realistic.)

The vice captain turned towards the two other "Demons" in query. "What?"

"Come here for a sec." Yanagi spoke up this time.

Slightly wary, but undeniably curious, Sanada coolly strode over to where they were standing. "What's wrong?" he repeated.

Yukimura looked at Yanagi. Yanagi looked at Yukimura. Yukimura AND Yanagi looked at Sanada and said, "You're not ok."

He scoffed. "Nonsense, I'm fine. What could be wrong?"

Yukimura forcibly turned Sanada around and pointed at the almost-hole in the wall. "That's the best proof, Genichirou. You're bothered by something. It's obvious to both of us, so don't even hide it."

"…" The emperor stayed silent, almost defiant at the two stares he was getting.

Yanagi picked up the conversation. "And here are my stats: 100% it's _not_ about tennis, 84% it's from something two days ago, and 72.5% it's about a certain…"

Sanada glared at the data specialist to shut him up, but an unperturbed Yanagi went on to finish his statement, "…class president?"

Genichirou glared at him even harder. "No way is that possible."

"And why would that be?"

"I'm not even tutoring her anymore. We are completely unrelated now, strangers essentially. How can I be worried over a stranger?" The emperor scoffed at the notion.

The Child of God and data specialist looked at each other, vexed. They knew that they would have to spell out Sanada's situation for him or he wouldn't get what was going on (being the rock he was). Sanada noticed the silent exchange, and suspiciously asked, "What's going on that I don't know about?"

Yanagi gave the circumstances some thought, considering whether he should reveal the information that only he and Yukimura knew at this point. Decided to give it a shot, he asked bluntly, "Genichirou, do you really not like Moriyama-san?"

"…Why."

"Just answer." The urgency in Yanagi's voice surprised the cool emperor, who hesitantly replied, "I don't hate her."

His two friends glanced at each other. Well, that was a step…they supposed. Yukimura stepped in this time. "If I were to tell you that Kimi-_hime_ were in trouble, what would you do?"

Sanada's eyebrows furrowed. "Are you telling me she is?" A slight note of anxiety appeared in his voice. Although he himself did not notice, the two with him did, and seeing a little ray of hope, pressed on.

Yanagi thought out aloud, "You don't even understand yourself right now, Genichirou."

Sanada looked at him, puzzled. "What are you trying to tell me?"

The data specialist thought back to two days ago, and began to tell his story.

"_Yanagi residence." _

"_Good evening. Tezuka speaking." _

"_Tezuka? If you want to talk to Seiichi I can turn the phone over to him. He's in the area I think. Probably a walk or something." _

"_No, actually, I was hoping that you could come over to my residential area right now if possible." _

"_Has something happened?" _

"_Aa, well, Kimiko's not feeling so great." _

"_Moriyama-san is?" _

"_Aa. She's in her room right now, though, so I wanted you to come over to see what's going on and tell _that guy_ that he needs to take responsibility for what he did." _

"That_ guy? …Are you talking about Genichirou?" _

"_It appears so. Kimiko came to me during the afternoon after she was let out of school in tears and after probing a bit it seems like she's become fond of Sanada." _

"…_Why me, Tezuka? Yukimura seems to be a better person to tell. You do know that Moriyama-san and he are childhood friends, right?" _

"_Quite well. But if Yukimura were to get involved, I'm not sure how he'd handle things because he's both Sanada's and Kimiko's close friend. Things get complicated when you're attached to both sides of a war." _

"_True…All right, I'll head over there now." _

"_Thanks…Do you know where my house is?" Tezuka had an uncanny feeling that Yanagi already knew. _

"_Yeah," the data specialist confirmed almost happily, "My data tells me everything. I should thank Sadaharu for this." _

_Tezuka sighed under his breath, and then replied into the phone, "All right then, I'll be at home so just ring the doorbell as soon as you get here."_

"_Yeah, I'll get there as soon as possible. I want to help Moriyama-san too. So see you in a while." _

"_Aa. In a bit." _

_With that, Yanagi hung up, leaving Tezuka looking at the receiver in a mix of lingering worry and minor amusement. "Inui, you're running 100 laps around the courts the next time I see you…"_

Yanagi paused for a while, taking a quick look at Sanada. Yukimura did the same, with a hopeful face. The emperor simply gave them a blank expression in reply. "So?" he asked indifferently.

Yanagi and Yukimura slumped visibly, sighing. _Is he worried about her or not?_ The data specialist looked Sanada in the eye and continued recounting. "So I went, under the pretense of discussing our tennis teams' progress…And I met Moriyama-san while I was there."

Sanada gave him a silent stare again, careful to keep from showing any emotion on his face.

"And to be honest, she looked…" Yanagi stopped for a second, searching for a more polite way of phrasing it.

Yukimura ran a hand through his blue locks and growled in frustration. Stopping Yanagi's pondering, he turned to Sanada and bluntly told him, "She looked like crap, to put it straight. And Genichirou, I hate to say it, but it's your fault."

Yanagi cringed for a split second. _This was exactly what Tezuka had been trying to avoid…_ But he gave up and shrugged. Seiichi would know eventually, either way. Might as well have him be the middleman while he could.

The captain continued. "I don't know what happened between you two, but yesterday I saw her and she was a complete mess. Straggly hair, rumpled uniform, bags under the eyes, slouching posture. And Sanada, of all people, _you_ would know that there has to be something wrong when she becomes like that."

Sanada nodded slowly, then stopped himself and said, "Even so, what is your point?"

"She's depressed because of you."

"Nonsense. We were strangers from start to finish, what's to be depressed about?"

Yukimura was almost at the end of his rope. Calming himself down by inhaling deeply and pinching the bridge of his nose, he asked the clueless vice captain, "Are you sure nothing happened the day before yesterday?"

"Nothing especially. I just told her that I did not have to tutor her anymore, as the teacher had instructed me to tell her."

Yanagi began to pick up on something…or more like pick up on what Genichirou had been missing. "Genichirou, do you remember anything…odd, per say about two days ago?"

"Odd? …Now that you mention it…"

Yukimura caught on to what Yanagi was getting at. He chuckled drily, "Do you remember getting attacked by rabid fans that day?"

"Yes."

"Were they ten times more scary than usual?"

"…Yes." As much as Sanada didn't want to admit it, his fans _were_ pretty scary.

"And were they holding pretty boxes of somethings in their hands?"

"…Yes."

"What was the date two days ago, Genichirou?"

"February 14th."

"…"

"...Oh."

The two boys with the vice captain sighed in relief now. They finally cleared up one thing with him. But neither Yanagi nor Yukimura was finished.

Yanagi interjected, "So? Did Moriyama-san give you anything?"

Sanada looked at him blankly…AGAIN. "No. Why would she?"

Yet, as the two refrained from banging their heads on the court fence, he recalled something.

_What did she hide from me?_

"…Now that you mention it…" he began, immediately regaining the attention of his two friends. "She did hide something from me…" at their intense gazes, he partly took back his words, "I think."

Yanagi dug deep into his jersey pocket, searching for something. Finally finding what he wanted, he fished out what appeared to be a neatly folded piece of paper and with questioning eyes, handed it to Sanada. Upon opening it, Sanada's eyes widened in recognition.

Although that day, he had only caught a glimpse of the thing Kimiko had hid from him, at a full-blown picture of it, he knew that this was it.

"How did you get this?" he asked, barely containing the accusing tone in his voice.

"When I went over to her house, Tezuka asked me to try to get some evidence to get the reality into your rather impenetrable head."

"Hah?" Sanada raised an eyebrow. He didn't follow. Seriously.

Yanagi sighed. "She wanted to give that box of chocolates to you. But when you told her you wouldn't tutor her anymore she dumped it in the trash. I had to fish it out to get that photo for you."

"You're kidding." _Did I really hurt her that much?_

Yukimura stepped in, almost bristling with anger, surprising the usual stoic vice captain. "Genichirou, I've had it with you. I love both of you very much, but enough is enough. She likes you, to the point of being depressed because you were too casual with your words. And I can bet on my grandmother's grave that you love her just as much, too."

Yanagi turned Sanada to face him, staring him straight in the eyes and demanding, "Do you enjoy her presence when she's with you?"

"Well, she's not annoy—"

"Yes, or no, Genichirou."

"…Yes."

"If she were hurt, would you go to save her?"

"Hn."

"Are you happy when she's happy? Worried when she's sad?"

"…Aa."

"Do you see red when she's with other guys?"

"Wha…?" first came out of Sanada before he recalled something from a week ago.

"_Ne, Kimiko-san! Let's play together!" Halfway through practice, Akaya bounced over to Kimiko's seat on the bench and invited her to participate. _

_She gave a small smile in amusement at his liveliness, but declined politely, "No thank you, Kirihara-kun. I'd just get in the way." _

"_Aww, come on, Kimiko-san! It'll be fun!" He tugged on her arm lightly. "Saa, let's go!" _

_She laughed, but continued to say no. "Go on, Kirihara-kun. Let me be. I'll just be a hindrance."_

_Sanada looked over to check briefly on all the matches, before his eyes quickly riveted on a rare scene. Akaya was pulling insistently on Kimiko's arm, as if trying to pull her up and have her play with them. _

_What was he thinking! Sanada saw the smile on the girl's face, and watching their friendly interaction, flames of a certain growing something flared up inside of him before he extinguished it and intuitively moved to stop the young second-year ace. _

_But before he could take more than two steps, he heard Yukimura calling him. Looking behind him, he saw the captain beckoning him. _

_Straightening up, he turned towards the captain, trying to forget the image of Akaya and Kimiko burned in his mind, and replied as calmly as he could under the circumstances, "Coming, Seiichi." _

A begrudging "yes" came out of his mouth.

And finally, "Would you go at all costs to protect her from anything?"

"Yes."

"…" Yukimura and Yanagi regained their goofy grins. He was stiff, pretended to be uncaring, and had an uncanny ability to miss the most important things, but they would be here to help until he was well on his way to finding out for himself what he was missing.

"Sanada, you're in love."

* * *

><p>WOOHOO! CHAPTER 5 FINALLY DONE! Lord, this one really did take a while. Like I said, I swear my writing skills are going down the drain. Ok, so again, thanks to everybody who reviewed last time, and thanks to ksm013 for especially taking the time to critique it. Hope you all liked it this time ^^<p>

Remember, I'm always welcome to comments, questions, compliments, criticisms…maybe flames depending on my mood. ^^ But seriously, I don't bite, so please….. REVIEW! Ok, thanks to all! Love you! Hope to update again soon!

With bear hugs for everyone,

~Hime-chan, aka SpiritPrincess101


	6. Notice

Hey guys!

Sorry to disappoint you, but this won't be a new chapter.

I hope that all my readers liked my story so far-it's been my most successful thus far in my "writing career" here at Fanfiction.

But recently, I've received a completely honest critique and realized that wow, my writing really needs some work. And that kind of just hit me square in the face when I least expected it.

So I guess due to my subconscious arrogance and complacency, I was caught off guard and now I think I need a bit of time to myself. The fact that my writing is really bad is kind of cornering me right now, and I hope you guys can understand that I need to sort my feelings out.

I hope that over time, I can redo things and present to you a new/better me and, of course, Chapter 6 of The Empress as soon as possible.

Thank you to everyone who's supported me thus far. I really do love all of you and I will be back ASAP! Reborn!

Again, arigatou! Love you all!

~SpiritPrincess101, hime-chan


	7. Notice of RETURN

Hey all! I'm sorry to disappoint you again, but this is another notice! I WILL BE RETURNING WITH A NEW CHAPTER IN THE VERY NEAR FUTURE!

Hopefully that's good news. And if it's not, keep your mouth shut and your thoughts to yourself. I don't want flames right now. ^_^ XD Maybe after you read chapter 6 you can flame, but not now please and thank you. xD

All right, so, before I come back, I wanted to ask you all a couple questions. PLEASE if you have **_one_** minute of free time after reading, PLEASE ANSWER! I really appreciate everyone who's supported me so far, and I hope to hear from you this time. ESPECIALLY THIS TIME!

So in a PM or review, please answer at least one of the following questions! You don't have to do all, but those who do, OMG I LOVE YOU AND I WILL CERTAINLY MENTION YOU IN THE NEXT UPDATE! ^_^ Ah, I'd appreciate if everyone could do number 4! That's most important to me right now!

1) How do you like the story's plot so far? Confusing? Too fast? Too slow? Like or dislike/love or hate?

2) How do you like the portrayal of the characters? Love? Hate? Mary Sue? OOC?

3) Is there anything with the writing style that you like/dislike? If you wanted to change something about it, what would that be?

4) [PLEASE ANSWER THIS ONE!] Would anyone like me to rewrite the entire story in a different perspective? (For instance, all in Sanada's or all in Kimiko's.) OR would you prefer me to finish the story as it is now?

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE! I HOPE TO HEAR FROM YOU ALL SOON!

~Hime-chan

P.S. To those who don't know, I have a poll on my profile. If you'd like, please vote :) It might serve as a guidance for which character I do a story for next. :)


	8. Even

**Disclaimer: not mine. (A/N at the end. PLEASE READ!)**

* * *

><p>"<em><strong>Sanada, you're in love." <strong>_

_In love. In love. In love. In love. In love…_

Sanada gritted his teeth and slammed his racket down onto the ground, panting and glaring at the hole he had created in the wooden practice wall. Bloody fantastic.

It had been a full month since he and Kimiko had talked, and he was getting sick of knowing that he was in the wrong, and he couldn't do anything about it because she wouldn't say a word to him.

All right, sure. It _was_ his fault. But how was he to apologize if _she_ wouldn't talk to him?

_It's called approaching her yourself_, a tiny voice inside his head said. He pushed it away and picked up his racket. He'd think about it later. Now wasn't the time.

Yet he was reminded of it anyways. As he bounced the tennis ball, two of his teammates bounded over to him. "Hey, vice captain, where's Moriyama-san been this past month?"

Sanada turned and glowered at them, alarming Marui and Akaya. "Uh oh…"

He was about to vent his frustration when he heard a cough from behind him. Turning around, he saw Yanagi and Yukimura looking at him expectedly, and he apologized gruffly to the innocent duo. He subsequently stalked off in the other direction to find some personal space.

As he quickly strode off the courts, heading towards the water fountain, he heard Yanagi's and Yukimura's footsteps behind him. Sanada walked faster; he was _not_ in the mood to talk.

Reaching his destination, he immediately took off his cap and plunged his head into the stream of water from the fountain. The cool liquid soaked into his hair and flowed quickly off his face back into the drain. But icy as the water was, Sanada's blood was still boiling.

"Genichirou."

"Don't even get started, Seiichi."

"That's my line. You've got to do something."

"100% chance that even if Seiichi tried, he couldn't change anything, Genichirou. It's your problem. You've got to fix this."

"Nothing would change anyways."

"You _think_ it wouldn't."

"I '_think_' the truth!"

"Gen, Kimiko—"

The unexpected vibrating of Yukimura's phone cut him off. All three boys jumped slightly.

Yukimura bristled and flipped his phone open. "Who and what do you want?"

Sanada and Yanagi looked at Yukimura silently while he continued his conversation with the other person.

"Oh, it's you."

"Yes, he's here."

"No, bad idea."

"Fine then."

Yukimura abruptly took the phone away from his ear and tossed it at Sanada. "He wants to talk to you. Don't screw up."

Sanada looked at the phone, then Yukimura, then Yanagi, and then back to the phone. Warily examining the unidentified caller ID, he put the device to his ear. "Sanada speaking. Who is this?"

"It's me."

_What was this guy doing calling Seiichi?_ "What's your business?"

"Kimiko."

"How do you know her?" Sanada barely kept suspicion from coloring his voice.

"We're cousins."

_Tezuka and Moriyama are cousins?_ He couldn't see the resemblance, but that was beside the point. "Ok, Tezuka, if she's going to be in the conversation, I'm hanging up."

"Wait."

"What's the use of talking to me? I have no connection to her anymore."

"She does to you."

"What?"

Sanada heard a sigh on the other end. "Put it on speaker phone, Sanada. I'm assuming Yanagi's there, too."

He did as he was told, and the three of them huddled around, forming a tight triangle around Yukimura's cellphone.

"Yanagi, did you pass on everything to Sanada?"

"No, not quite yet. My data said that there was a 50% chance he'd get the big picture with just—"

"Forget it. I'll tell him myself."

"Just _what_ are you talking about?" Sanada was becoming frustrated about the fact that he seemed to be the only one not in on anything.

"Kimiko loves you."

A stunned silence trailed after the statement. He added after a moment's thought, "A lot."

Yukimura smirked. "You really do things bluntly, don't you, Tezuka?"

He glanced over at Sanada. They had revealed to him that she liked him. Yukimura sighed. His hopes of his friend figuring out for himself that she _loved_ him had just gone completely down the drain. And it was glaringly obvious that Sanada was having trouble coping with the magnitude of the truth.

_Like_, yes. That much was clear. But _love_? At this age? Nonsense.

Sanada stared at the phone in his hand. For the first time in his life, he was truly unsure of the path he wanted to take. Or to be more specific—unsure of how to begin walking the way he _did_ want to go.

"Sanada?" Tezuka's voice broke into his reverie.

"Just give me a moment."

Sanada closed his eyes, thinking. Just shutting out everything except the one topic he was concentrating on…Kimiko's face slowly appeared in his mind.

Happy memories of the tutoring sessions and walks to classes flew through like a whirlwind. The time he realized she was actually accelerated, the times when she collapsed on the floor, doubled over in laughter. Sanada's lips unconsciously twitched upwards.

But with the happy thoughts, Sanada realized exactly how much of an idiot he had been. From when Kimiko had run out of his house crying because he had insulted her passion—to his ignorance of timing and how much she really meant to him.

He liked the way her hair fluttered in the breeze, her chime-like laugh and the glow it brought to her face.

He liked the way her eyes danced with amusement when she couldn't laugh out loud, her company, the times she sat beside him in silence or conversation.

He liked _her_.

No. That wasn't right. Sanada felt the sun's rays warm his back. Taking in a deep breath through his nostrils, he opened his eyes with a new fire sparked within him. He _loved_ her, Kimiko Moriyama.

"Hey, Tezuka."

"Mhm."

"How is she?"

"Mad." Yukimura snorted at the monotonous reply. _No duh_.

"But, she misses you."

Sanada inhaled sharply, hesitating.

"Sanada?"

"Did she tell you that herself?"

"Yes."

"That's sufficient, Tezuka. Thanks." Sanada made a move to end the call when the caller stopped him.

"Sanada. One thing."

"Quickly."

"Someone else wants to talk to you."

"Hah?" Sanada raised an eyebrow, looking up at his two friends for clues. They looked back at him, shrugging. _We don't know either_.

"He's here."

Sanada focused back on the phone. Who on earth could this—?

"Sanada. I hear that you're wooing Kimi-_hime_, ahn~?"

Sanada fought back a groan. "Atobe," he spat, and ground his teeth in frustration. Great. Another person to add into the equation.

"How do _you_ know Moriyama?"

"Do you know the school she went to before Rikkaidai?"

"Hyosei Elementary."

Atobe paused. Sanada listened attentively, waiting for a response, but getting none.

Atobe sighed and said, "You're an idiot."

"In what sense exactly?"

"Oh? So you admit it?"

"Atobe…" Sanada said warningly.

"Like I said, you're an idiot. What does Hyosei sound like, moron? Ahn~?"

Sanada's forehead creased. He thought. And thought. And finally realizing Atobe's point, he had to refrain from smacking himself upside the head. Yes. He was an idiot. In all senses. He was losing his mind both emotionally and academically.

"Kimiko was on the student council while she was at Hyosei—I met her through Choutarou and Shishido. Shishido's her cousin. And, well, Choutarou—I'm surprised he didn't ask her out," Atobe drawled.

Sanada wasn't listening closely enough to get irritated. "_Of _course_ Hyosei sounds like Hyotei_!" …Wait. So Atobe had met Kimiko before he did? It wasn't exactly something to be surprised about…but that unsettled Sanada. A bout of jealousy stabbed at him. He didn't like that. Not one bit. Especially because the person happened to be a pompous, attention-grabbing, womanizing—

"Hey, Sanada. Listen up. I want princess to be happy."

Sanada tilted his chin up a fraction of a degree before catching himself. For Christ's sake, what was he _nodding_ for?

Tezuka took over. "Basically, if you make her cry—"

"All right, I get it." Sanada snapped the phone shut, simply standing there and staring downwards at the cellphone in his hand, his expression unreadable.

"Genichirou?" Yukimura and Yanagi had reason to be worried. Their friend didn't seem to be handling the situation emotionally well.

Sanada thought quickly. He had to get her back. He loved her. He wanted her by his side. He—wait.

"Guys. What day is it today?" Sanada's head jerked up to stare at Yukimura and Yanagi.

"The 14th of March."

"Good." Sanada began briskly walking off the courts.

"Hey, Genichirou! Where are you going?" Yukimura shouted after his quickly disappearing silhouette.

"To get the one thing I _really_ need," Sanada yelled in reply without turning backwards. His eyes set forward towards his goal, his fast-paced walk quickly became too time-consuming, and Sanada broke out into an all out run towards the school building.

Yukimura and Yanagi looked at each other and grinned.

"Well," Yukimura said, "that turned out well."

"100% successful."

Sanada ran as fast as his legs would take him. The wind nipped at his cheeks, but he ignored it. He was a man on a mission.

Running through the school building's open doors, he dashed to the student council room and flung the door open. "Moriyama!"

Silence ensued as several pairs of eyes turned in shock to the intruder.

"…Sa…nada?" a shaky voice penetrated through the stunned silence like a knife through butter. Sanada immediately shifted his gaze to where the voice came from. He stormed over to Kimiko and grabbed her roughly by the arm.

"H-hey!"

"I'll be borrowing her for a bit," he said brusquely to the stunned council members. The vice president could only nod back in a daze. Sanada hurriedly thanked him and subsequently dragged a loudly protesting Kimiko out of the room, slamming the door behind them with a mighty bang.

The entire room shook with the force Sanada used to close the door, and the vice president was startled back into business mode. He clapped his hands. "All right, guys, let's get back to work while Moriyama-san is occupied."

"Hey, Sanada! Let go! It hurts!"

He ignored her, continuing to drag her through the empty hallway.

"Let go, I said!"

He didn't slow down. No response. Not even a flinch.

Kimiko narrowed her eyes. _What's with him today?_ She glared at her "captor." "CUT IT OUT ALREADY!" she yelled, digging her heels into the floor and yanking her arm away from his grip.

Sanada stopped and turned to stare silently at her. "What?" he asked coolly.

'_What?' he says! What does he mean 'what'? He's the one who unreasonably dragged me this whole way!_ Kimiko was absolutely fuming. "What do you want?"

Sanada said nothing, choosing to instead stare at Kimiko, who began to feel edgy under his unwavering gaze.

Minutes passed—the hall was completely silent; as cliché as it was, Kimiko really could hear the unfaltering movements of the clock's second hand. _Tick, tock_, it went. _Tick, tock. Tick, tock_. A bead of sweat rolled down her temple; she licked her drying lips.

Sanada finally took a single, cautious step, towards Kimiko, but still saying nothing, betraying no emotion.

In an instinctive response, she took a hurried step back.

Two steps forward, two steps backwards. A lunge towards her, a lunge away from him. They continued on and on, a waltz of to and fro, towards and away…

"Oof!" Kimiko's back eventually struck onto the hard wall in her last ditch efforts to get away from Sanada.

He stopped for a moment, and Kimiko swore she saw a smirk flit across his stony features before he slammed his arms over her head, trapping her in between him and the wall.

…_H-hah?_ Kimiko's mind was blank with shock. _What's with this…_ flustered, she looked around. _AWKWARD POSITION MUCH!_

Sanada finally spoke. "Hey, Moriyama, isn't it about time you talked to me again?"

Kimiko cringed slightly at the accusation, but quickly recovered her cool facade. "I don't see why there is a necessity for me to speak with you, Sanada."

"Oh?" Sanada's voice took on a dangerous tone. He again fell silent and stared intensely at Kimiko, searching her eyes with a disconcertingly piercing glare. She couldn't help but squirm a little bit.

_Ugh, I have to get out of here. …All right,_ she decided on a shotgun escape plan. _On the count of three, I'll scream for help. At least I'll be able to run. Ok? One. Two. Thr—_

"You like me, don't you?" Sanada's voice sliced through the fog of Kimiko's brain. Shocked, she froze like a deer in headlights, only able to gape back at the boy in front of her.

Sanada coolly raised an eyebrow. "So it's true."

Kimiko's chest ached at the smirk on his face. _Look at that confidence. I can't…I can't beat him._ Shock. Pain. Confusion was dancing a tango with her heart as unsuppressed fury began to well up from the mental abyss it had been suppressed and locked away in.

"And I heard that someone had prepared chocolates for me, but didn't have the guts to gi—"

"And whose fault is that!" A strangled wail erupted from Kimiko's throat, surprising both Sanada and herself. Tears began to well up in her eyes, spilling out drop by pained drop. Kimiko messily wiped them away with her palms; Sanada could only watch in surprise.

_This wasn't what I planned to say to him…_

_I didn't mean…to hurt her…_

"H-hey…" All sarcasm and cockiness gone, Sanada reached out a tender hand, but Kimiko sensed it and smacked it away.

"Why did it have to be you? Why are you the one who can control my emotions like obedient pawns in the palms of your hands? Why you…?" she shrieked, having completely lost all self-control. "Why do I have to love you?"

Sanada's eyes grew wide at her unintentional confession, and his gaze softened. His stiffened cage-like arms loosened just the slightest bit; he tried to give her some room to breathe.

But Kimiko just continued. "Why are you even here, Sanada? Why do you even care if I talk to you or not? Didn't you say so yourself? We have no relationship to each other at all! You're just my old tu—MMPHHH!"

Sanada smothered her cries into his chest. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he quickly pulled her to him in the middle of her rant, burying his chin into her hair.

"I—" Sanada's voice broke; he cleared his throat and tried again. "I have something to correct."

Kimiko had quieted by this time, and lifted her head from Sanada's chest. "Something…to correct?"

"Something very important." Sanada's face was turned the other way to hide the almost imminent pink on his high cheekbones.

Kimiko was getting a vague idea of what he wanted to say. "And that is?"

"Er. Well. Um." Sanada awkwardly cleared his throat again. "That is…er…"

"That is…?" Kimiko was starting to enjoy herself—her frustration gone now that she was beginning to understand exactly how Sanada ticked.

"I…" Sanada began.

Kimiko grinned. "You…?"

"I…about you…"

"Yes?"

Sanada took a deep breath. _Calm down. You can do this. Don't screw up_. He exhaled, and said out loud what had been in his heart all this time. "I love you."

Kimiko laughed in joy and threw her arms around his neck. "I do too, Sanada-kun! I love you too!"

He was frozen on the spot the moment she hugged him, but then relaxed and returned the embrace. "Thank you," he whispered gratefully. (To her, or to God, we'll never know.)

Suddenly, an important task popped into his head. He pulled a puzzled Kimiko away from him and set her down on the ground. "Turn around and close your eyes," he said with a rare smile.

She did as he asked, albeit a bit confused. "What's going on?" She heard the sound of something rattling inside a container.

"Wait for 5 seconds please."

Kimiko decided to be obedient, but for fun, counted out the seconds. "5…4…3…2…1…"

"All right, you imp, turn around now."

She turned around meekly, and immediately was met with Sanada's deep laughter. "Open your eyes, too."

So she opened them.

And what a sight she beheld! Dangling from Sanada's fingers was a delicate silver necklace with a lovely chain and a crystal pendant in the middle…?

"Sanada-kun?"

"Yeah?"

"Um…"

He panicked. "Is it not to your liking?"

Kimiko almost laughed at his wide-eyed fear. "No, no," she waved her hand to reassure him that she liked it plenty. "But what's with this crescent shaped pendant?"

"Ah, that." Sanada put a hand on the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Well, you see, I've got a silver version of the other half." He reached into his back pocket and brought out a similar silver chain. Sure enough, there was the mirror image of the crystal pendant on Kimiko's necklace. He took the two pendants and put them together, shifting them until they matched, and then showed it to her.

Kimiko gasped. It's… "a heart," she breathed.

"U-uh…yeah…" Sanada laughed awkwardly. "Cheesy of me, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Kimiko nodded, causing Sanada to sigh. But she then added, "I like it."

"Really?"

"Yup." She turned to him with a smile like the sun.

Stunned, he looked back down at the necklaces in his hands. "S-shall I help you put it on?"

"Oh, sure. Thank you." Hands shaking slightly, Sanada draped her necklace around her neck and closed the clasp. Kimiko looked down at it and smiled tenderly. "It's beautiful."

She turned to Sanada. "Can I put yours on you too?"

"Eh?" Sanada took a step back.

"What? You put something binding like this on me. It's my turn!"

"N-no. Er, not that, I'm really happy you feel that way, but I d-don't usually wear stuff like this."

"I don't care. Stay still!" Kimiko sat him down on a random bench in the hallway and made him face the other way. Quickly draping and fastening the necklace, she turned him around again and grinned cheekily. "Now we're even."

"Yeah." Sanada smiled defeatedly back, reaching out a hand to tentatively ruffle her hair, though she protested playfully. "Happy White Day, Kimiko."

* * *

><p>AN: OMG IM SO SORRY TO EVERYONE! IT TOOK A LOT OF TIME TO GET STARTED AGAIN! IM SO SORRY! IM 3 MONTHS LATE I KNOW IM SO SORRY!

I hope you guys liked this chapter. If anyone wants any adjustments I'll do it, so just tell me! I feel like this one was kinda rushed, but it was 'cause I really wanted to "see" you guys again, so I pushed through a couple all-nighters to finish this!

Is it any better than the other chapters? I was hoping for some character development. Sanada seriously needed to get his love meter on!

Anyways, once more, I'M SOOOO SORRY! And thank you to everyone who supported me! I love you all! Hope to hear from you soon!

~Hime-chan


	9. Eternal Haven

"Genichirou! Good morning!"

Sanada and Yanagi, who happened to be murmuring quietly over a small piece of paper in their hands, looked up in recognition.

Seeing the owner of the voice, Sanada chuckled, but hid his fond smile when he felt Yanagi's eyes on him. Friends were friends…however, if he got too lax about his image, the tennis regulars would _never_ let him live this down. He shuddered inwardly at the thought.

Kimiko leapt from about 10 feet away and landed gracefully in front of the duo.

Yanagi nodded to her, slightly impressed. "Good morning Moriyama-san."

She beamed back at him. "Morning to you too, Yanagi-san."

Turning to Sanada, she began chattering excitedly. "Hey, are you free today? Because I know this really great restaurant that just opened in the downtown area—I heard its parfaits are super tasty! Oh and Genichirou's favorite miso soup of course…" she continued to rattle on.

Yanagi smiled at her enthusiasm and made to leave, patting Sanada on the back as he moved past him. "Just remember to use _that_ if you're stuck, Genichirou."

Kimiko stopped in her babbling immediately. "Stuck? Is something wrong with your studies, Genichirou?"

Sanada paled for a split second before retaining his calm composure. "No, nothing. We were just talking about tennis practice. It's nothing."

She looked at him intently for a while, not saying anything. Ironically considering his size, he felt like an ant being scrutinized under a huge magnifying glass.

Eventually, Kimiko shrugged and dismissed it. "So, are you free?" she said, returning to her hyper state.

Sanada breathed a quiet sigh of relief before replying. "Yeah, we just have a quick meeting for the regulars and then my afternoon's open."

"Can I come listen?"

He looked at her, surprised. "Do you want to? Today's not really exciting stuff."

She simply smiled, nodding. "I just want to be with you. I'm going to be stuck to you like peanut butter and jelly from now on, so be prepared," she added playfully, looking up at her (oh dare she say it?) boyfriend.

Sanada stiffened, abruptly turned away, and began to walk towards their first class. "Come on, we're going to be late."

Kimiko laughed, thinking how adorable he was, before chasing after him to catch up.

"Oii~, Genichirou! Wait up!"

* * *

><p>"So, in 331 BCE, Alexander the Great conquered…" the history teacher droned on, oblivious to the fact that all of his students' attention was directed somewhere…that was <em>not<em> the board he was writing on.

"Oh yeah, and did you hear me mention? They have Genichirou's favorite miso soup there, too. I looked it up and it got 4.5 star reviews, you know?"

"Hmm."

"Yup."

"…Might be worth a try."

"What do you mean might? I know you want to go."

"Brat."

"Hey!" A playful punch followed.

All 19 pairs of eyes in the room concentrated on a certain couple sitting in the front, their stares penetrating through Kimiko's and Sanada's backs, and Kimiko visibly stiffened like a rock, disconcerted by all the eyes she felt on them.

"Did you hear that? Did you see that?"

"Yeah I did!"

"Are they going out?"

"WHAT? I didn't hear about this?"

"I think they look good together."

"Yeah I agree."

"Huh! As if our Sanada-sama would ever like _that_ type of girl!"

The whispers began to collect like bees buzzing on a hot summer's day, with the same degree of annoyance. Kimiko was becoming uncomfortable, her body beginning to curl up a bit and her vision flitting from side to side like that of a cornered animal. Class president responsibilities got her some attention she _wanted _from the students, but being the fruit of the gossip vine did not.

_What should I do? I don't want to be part of these rumors. Just go away! Go somewh—_

She looked down at her hand in surprise, and back up at Sanada, who was staring dutifully at the board.

"**1. When she's scared, protect her."**

He squeezed her hand tighter with his bigger one, reassuring her of his presence. _There's nothing to fear_. _I'm here for you_.

That was right. As long as he was with her she had nothing to be afraid of. She was strong with him by her side.

Kimiko nodded and grasped Sanada's elbow, leaning on him momentarily as a silent means of thanks. He ruffled her hair and then motioned to the board with his chin. _Time to pay attention again_.

"Oh yeah," Kimiko said sheepishly, redirecting her attention to the teacher, who _still _hadn't noticed that no one was really paying him any mind.

The two walked along the crowded sidewalk, sometimes separating to avoid the occasional rushing OL or reckless child.

"Oof!" Kimiko hit the ground on her back as a small boy crashed into her. She sat up groaning, rubbing her bottom as the child apologized quickly and dashed off.

Sanada held out his hand to her immediately, a worried crease on his brow. "Are you all right?"

Kimiko took his hand, pushing on it to get herself back upright, while hearing a lot of whispers as she stood up straight.

"Oh, what a cute couple!"

"That girl seems too young for him."

"They look so sweet!"

"Oh he's soo my type!"

Kimiko flung off Sanada's hand and stormed away, tearing through the crowd that had formed in a circle around the small accident.

"**2. When she walks away from you mad, follow her."**

He stood in shock for a couple seconds before dashing off in the same direction. "Excuse me," he grunted as he pushed through the mob, "Please let me through!"

Finally breaking through the human knot, he sighted Kimiko speedwalking away and ran after her.

"Oi! Kimiko!" he yelled. She did not stop, nor did she even turn to look at him.

"**3. When she pushes you or hits you, grab her and don't let go."**

"Oi!" he said again as he caught up, grabbing her hand and yanking her to him. He pulled her face up with both hands to force her to look at him. "What's wrong?"

She tried to pull her face away, to no avail. Sanada's eyes widened at the sight of fresh tears running down his girlfriend's face. "Hey, what happened? Are you hurt anywhere? Did that boy do something I didn't see?"

She shook her head furiously.

"Then what is it?" Sanada was becoming frustrated.

"**4. When she ignores you, give her your attention."**

"…"

Sanada looked at her seriously for a long time, sighed, and then buried her head into his chest. "Hey I don't know what's going on, but I'll be here forever. No matter where you are, when you need me." He added under his breath, "I've got to thank Renji for that rulebook."

"Eh? Rulebook?" Kimiko looked up in confusion, her tears stopped and eyes dried.

"Mm…" Sanada turned slightly pink before sliding his hand into his back pocket to fish out the paper Yanagi had handed to him that morning. Kimiko nabbed it, glancing it over quickly before bursting into laughter.

"…Is it that funny," Sanada sweatdropped a little.

Kimiko didn't respond, but continued to giggle, bent over in her uncontrollable mirth.

After she was done, Kimiko looked at Sanada and immediately blushed, her face resembling a juicy ripe tomato from the number one greenhouse in Japan.

…Not that Sanada's was much better off. They stood awkwardly in the middle of the square for several minutes, not daring to look at the other.

"So, um, in any case," Sanada coughed in embarrassment. "I'll be here for you. I don't know what happened just now, but whenever you feel like talking about it, I'll listen. As long as it's not stupid," he added.

Kimiko mock-glared at him. "Are you implying something?"

Sanada smiled at the change in her mood. "Oh nothing at all. What could you possibly be talking about?"

She grabbed his arm and towed him towards the opposite direction they had come from. "All right you big goof, we're heading to that restaurant now. Come!"

He raised an eyebrow at her "commanding" voice, but followed along obediently.

As she slowed back down to a normal walk, once again silent, Sanada noticed as Kimiko's hand lost its grip and began to slide down to his, finally resting in his hand and interlacing their fingers. She didn't look up, knowing he was looking at her questioningly. "It's easier this way."

Sanada responded coolly. "All right," he said, all the while amused at how even the tips of her ears were tinged a strawberry pink. She was so easy to read…usually, he amended his thoughts just a bit.

* * *

><p>"Missing."<p>

"What?" Sanada looked up from his soup to Kimiko, who was on his right. He could not believe his ears. What did she say?

"Yeah…" Kimiko sipped quietly at her milkshake. "They looked through the plane rubble at the scene of the crash but they didn't find my parents' bodies."

"Well, that's good…in a sense. Keep hope." Sanada tried to cheer his girlfriend up, now understanding that the emotional displays the entire day were from the stress of not knowing what was going on. She heard the worry in his voice, and straightened from her dejected slouch, slapping a forced smile onto her face.

"Yeah, I'm sure they're ok." Turning back to her meal, she placed her left hand on the bowl's edge and her right hand on the spoon, as if to eat again.

She lifted the utensil, but did not make a move to scoop any of her food up. Sanada turned immediately when he heard the rattling clatter of metal on ceramic. He looked in panic at Kimiko as he noticed her entire body was shaking. The tears that had been suppressed from before returned with twice as much force as before, flowing unstoppably. Sanada remembered one of the last lines on the sheet.

"**5. When you see her start crying, just hold her and don't say a word."**

Using his right arm, he pulled Kimiko under his "wing," silently supporting her. Kimiko cried into his shirt with desperate sobs of insecurity, of fear, crying out all of her worst nightmares onto his broad chest. "Thank you," Kimiko managed to mumble out. "Thank you so much for everything."

He was her friend, her love, her savior. Sanada was the haven that Kimiko could run to times got tough. And now was one of those times.

Sanada felt a little awkward just sitting there while Kimiko cried, so he chose to comfort her somehow. His hand hung in the air for a while, unsure of what to do. Sanada settled on her hair, recalling how his own mother patted his head as a child. Though initially, he was a bit hesitant and unnatural, he soon gained more confidence and continuously stroked his fingers gently through her smooth hair.

Kimiko finally stopped crying after what seemed like eternity to Sanada. Not that he minded—he had promised he would be there for her, and he always would be. No matter what happened or who got in the way. Nothing. No one. Nowhere.

She lethargically picked up her head from his chest and stared at Sanada. He looked back at her, confused, unsure of what her expression meant. It appeared to be a face of "deep concentration," but on what he had no clue.

"Genichirou?"

"Yeah?"

"Arigatou."

He grunted. _No problem_.

Kimiko grinned, and buried her face into his chest again, breathing in the scent of soap and musk that somehow just screamed _Sanada_. "I love you."

The final pillar of love: **"6. ****When she says that she loves you, she really does more than you could understand."**

* * *

><p>Source (where the bold quotes come from): http:gleez . com/ articles/ relationship/ love-harmony/what-true-boyfriend-should-do (get rid of any spaces)

A/N: Ok, I'm definitely back on track. I'll try to keep writing as often as possible, so guys, could you PLEASE review? Seriously, as soon as I stop asking no one writes except for a scarce few. (Thank you you guys, I really do appreciate it.)

Now press that button, PLEASE! In return I'll write as fast as possible, I swear!


	10. Watching Over Her

This chapter is dedicated to Chillybean and SavageTrickster! Thank you both for supporting me all this time with consistent reviews! 3

For those who have given me reviews and I have not mentioned, thank you guys so much! You probably have no idea how much they mean to me! ^^ Doumo arigatou!

Here you go, Chapter 8!

Disclaimer: I don't own Prince of Tennis, only Moriyama Kimiko.

* * *

><p><em>No. No. No no no!<em> Kimiko stared in horror at the television screen.

"IYAAAAAAAAA!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, the high-pitched wail of mourning eerily resonating in the hearts of people for miles around.

* * *

><p>Sanada opened the door sleepily, and was shocked to see the visitor—or rather, visitor<em>s<em>.

"Tezuka!" He looked down into the boy's arms. "Oi! What's wrong with Kimiko?" he panicked.

"Quickly. Let's speak inside." Tezuka stepped hurriedly into the house while carrying Kimiko in his arms.

Setting her down on a couch, Tezuka spread a blanket offered by Sanada over her and gestured to Sanada to follow him somewhere else. Anywhere else.

"Where can we speak privately?"

Sanada moved quickly to the door, sliding it open and walking out into the foyer. He turned to Tezuka.

Sanada hissed before the other boy could say anything. "What happened to her? She's pale, her hair's a mess, and she's not even dressed properly!"

Tezuka shook his head, and looked up into Sanada's eyes. Sanada recoiled at how bloodshot they were; he never thought he would see this distraught side of Tezuka.

"This morning, Kimiko's parents were found dead a couple of miles from the rubble." Sanada thought he heard Tezuka's voice waver slightly before continuing. "I was called over to her house when the neighbors heard a scream from inside. When I went, I found her fainted on the floor, and I thought it best to bring her to you. My parents are grieving, and while I'd like to take care of her, they have a burden on their shoulders already."

Sanada was shocked. He had never met Kimiko's parents, but after hearing so many stories about them, this came as a horror to him as well.

Anxious, he immediately moved to go back to where Kimiko was, but was caught on the arm by Tezuka. Sanada turned his head to look questioningly back at him.

"I'd like to speak with your parents to see if you could take her in." Not a question. A statement.

"But-!" Sanada tried to protest, but Tezuka shook his head firmly. "She'll be best off here."

Something in Tezuka's voice caused Sanada to accept without resisting. Not that he minded having to take care of Kimiko. He wanted to actually; but he was surprised that Tezuka would give it up so easily. Rather, _entrust_ his beloved cousin to him so readily.

In any case, he would take on the responsibility. He'd be there for her, through rain and shine. And while the storm ahead looked fierce, he'd stick through it…for her. Because she was special. The one and only.

"All right," Sanada agreed, "come with me. My parents are most likely in the study." He moved towards the stairs.

Tezuka nodded in reply, and followed quietly, an ominous silence trailing behind them, hanging menacingly in the air.

* * *

><p>Kimiko stirred, opening and blinking her eyes a few times before noticing her surroundings. "Where is this?" She sat up suddenly, almost blacking out once more. "Whoa," she muttered, putting a hand to her pounding head.<p>

Sanada replied, "Tezuka brought you here."

"Is he still here?"

"...No."

Kimiko was quiet for a while. "Did he say why?"

"…Yes."

Sanada's mother put a comforting hand on Kimiko's shoulder. "Please don't stress yourself out; your future is a long road ahead."

Kimiko assuredly patted the hand in gratitude, but the older woman swore that the girl's hand lingered for a split second in its shakiness. _Was it my imagination?_

Taking a deep breath, Kimiko nodded, "Yes, I understand. Thank you."

Sanada's grandfather and father also offered their condolences, to which she nodded in thanks.

"Well then," she said cheerfully, getting up from the couch, "I should get going about now."

"Where to?"

Kimiko froze, and Sanada knew his suspicions had been right. She didn't want to go home… now her parents weren't just away; they were _gone_.

Sanada interrupted the silence he had created, informing her, "Tezuka has left you in our hands. You'll stay with us for now."

"No, that's—" Kimiko shook her head.

Sanada's mother again spoke up. "Kimiko-chan, please stay with us. We should get through this together." She added in a whisper, "Gen-chan's grandfather was acquaintances with your parents. He's having a hard time too. Will you stay with us for him, as well?"

Kimiko glanced at Sanada's grandfather. He smiled weakly back at her. She sighed. "All right then, I'm sorry to impose on you but I'll be staying here for a while, so I'm in your hands."

Sanada breathed a sigh of relief. If she was with him, he could rest a little easier; at least he could watch over her closer. He put a hand on her shoulder and turned her in a certain direction, pointing out her room, which was close by. "Turn right and then left, and the room next to the bathroom is yours. Sorry it was all we have."

She shook her head again. "That's so much already. Thank you." She stood up again, and said, "If you do not mind, I'll retire to my room first. Excuse me."

She bowed and walked quickly to her new room, the sound of her footsteps growing smaller and smaller.

Sanada sat still after he heard the door close…At least he tried to. Not moments later, he pushed back his chair, looking at his family. "May I…?"

"Go," his grandfather shooed him. "Go to her. She needs you the most at this moment."

Sanada nodded once and then hurried off. _Kimiko…_

* * *

><p>Kimiko slid the door closed and ran to her bed, throwing herself onto it, face first into the mattress.<p>

Silent sobs racked through her body as she whispered desperately into the sheets, "Papa…Mama…why was it you? Kami-sama, why them?"

_Why_ _me_…

_Why them_…

"WHY?" Kimiko flung her head up to cry out in her suffering. Her heart felt like it was being split into thousands of pieces, shattered into shards that would be flung away by even the lightest breeze.

* * *

><p>Sanada stood outside Kimiko's room, his hand hovering next to the handle, unsure of what to do. If he entered now, what could he do for her? But just hearing her in her pain…his open hand curled up into a tight fist, his nails digging into his palm.<p>

A high-pitched scream suddenly resonated in Sanada's ears; the mourning tone sent a shock through his own chest.

He flung the door open and rushed to Kimiko's side, sitting on her bed and gently cradling her up in his arms in a matter of seconds.

"Kimiko, Kimiko," he soothed frantically, instinctively petting her hair and trying to calm her even though his own heart was beating just as hard with panic and sorrow.

She said nothing, but intuitively threw her arms around his neck and buried her face into his shoulder. She wanted to latch onto something, someone—anything that she could lean on for support. As the sobs racked through her, Sanada could feel the wetness welling up in his own eyes as the tears ran down in warm rivers onto his shirt.

He embraced her as tightly as he could, helpless to calm the grieving in her heart. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he repeated, guilty and frustrated.

_I'm so sorry._

_Your pain is my pain._

_Yet, I am useless; I cannot sooth your sorrow._

_Forgive me…because this is all I can do for you. _

* * *

><p>REVIEW! PLEASE! Sorry it's too short! I think that was the best place to stop...<p>

Btw, if you have time please check out my other stories from Prince of Tennis: Crush (RyomaSakuno), Daydreaming Cause You're This Close (TezukaSakuno)!  
>If you readwatch Gakuen Alice, then please check out "You Made Me Smile!"


	11. Glad for Everything

AHHHH! I APOLOGIZE! (does dogeza as flat as possible) I KNOW IM REALLY REALLY LATE! I HAD EXAMS (mom: that's an excuse)!

In any case, thank you to everyone reviewed and pushed for this chapter! I had to reconstruct it because my laptop got stolen along with half of the original draft, so poo you stupid thief. But anyways, HERE IT IS! Chapter 9! Enjoy!

* * *

><p>Sanada gently laid Kimiko onto the bed, her brown hair streaming across the pillow like dark, wavy rivers.<p>

As he quietly backed away and attempted to slip out the door, he heard a tiny mumble from behind him. He turned to see Kimiko gazing sleepily at him through half-lidded eyes. "Thank you," she whispered. "Genichirou."

Sanada nodded and took another step out of her room before halting. Seeming to be debating with himself for a moment, he then rushed back towards the bed. Kimiko started a bit as warm arms suddenly wrapped around her, Sanada's face buried in her neck. "I love you."

She smiled, patting his head amusedly in return for the gruff confession. "Thank you," she murmured once more. "For everything."

He let go and faced her, regaining his stern tone. "Sleep. I'll wake you up in time for dinner." Kissing the top of her head for the last time, he strolled out, briskly shutting the door behind him after making sure she had closed her eyes.

"How is she?"

Sanada's parents immediately cornered him as soon as he left Kimiko's room. Afraid their conversation would wake her; Sanada dragged them back to the living room.

"She's asleep now, but she was grieving a lot before calming down."

His parents exchanged concerned looks before looking at their son with worry. He punched a nearby cushion in frustration. "Why can't I do anything for her?"

Sanada continued to punch the cushion while his mother and father stood by, looking on helplessly and unsure of what to do to comfort him. Finally, a hand firmly grasped Sanada's shoulder, and he paused in recognition. "Grandfather?"

"She needs you, Genichirou. What is she going to do if you lose yourself as well?"

His grandfather's tone was weary, but at the same time, laced with gentleness and concern for both the teenagers. She was already like a granddaughter to him, and he hoped that Sanada and her would both be healthy and happy, which meant they needed to somehow overcome this hurdle together.

"Calm yourself." Sanada took in a couple deep breaths through his nose before letting it out.

"Now let everything go. Forget." Both grandfather and grandson sat down and closed their eyes in meditation, allowing the world around them to disappear for the few seconds they needed complete silence.

…

"Better?"

"Yes. Thank you, grandfather. Mother, father." Sanada couldn't express the gratitude inside himself at the moment for his family. However, a pang of pain struck, as he realized that Kimiko no longer had that. _Unless…_ an idea hit him and his eyes lit up.

"Mother? Father?" His parents turned towards him in curiosity.

"Could I ask a really big favor of you? And Grandfather, too?"

* * *

><p>"Kimiko?" Sanada rapped on the door before sliding it open.<p>

She was sleeping serenely on the bed still, her face similar to that of an angel—well in Sanada's opinion anyways.

"Hey, Kimiko. Get up." Sanada rocked her a bit to wake her up. "Dinner."

As if it could hear him, Kimiko's stomach immediately rumbled in response to the word, yet the actual person did not budge an inch. Sanada chuckled and knelt down at her bedside, thoughtfully gazing at her sleeping face for a couple moments before gently tugging off the bed covers.

Kimiko squinted open one eye in lamentation from losing her blankets, but immediately squealed. "Eeeek!" Sanada continued to tickle her as she laughed uncontrollably and futilely attempted to bat away his hands. "No, aha, Genichirou. Ha, no, bad—aha, go-away!"

He finally relented and stood up, again ruffling her hair. "Time for dinner. Just get dressed. My mom's set out some stuff for you, and your belongings that Tezuka brought."

"Kunimitsu?"

"Yeah. He came over a second time before leaving again. Seems like his parents are having a rough time, too."

"I see…Auntie and Uncle are grieving as well…"

A silence settled over them like a low cloud, and both of them were speechless for a good few minutes. Sanada broke the quiet by clearing his throat.

"So just casually dress. No need to get fancy," he added, already seeing Kimiko attempt to style her hair.

"Oh, okay." She nodded, somewhat confused, before quickly tying up her hair in a ponytail and then slipping down from the bed. Sanada watched as she grabbed the clothes set out by Sanada's mother and spread it out, looking at the material admiringly. "Wow, it's so pretty…" He smiled.

She grabbed the bottom of her shirt before freezing and turning a warning eye on Sanada.

"Well?" he looked at her expectantly. "Hurry up. We're making my parents wait."

She covered her face with her hand in exasperation. "Genichirou, I'm _not_ your tennis team."

He looked at her, at her clothes, and back at her. "Oh… OH."

Kimiko watched in amusement as her usually gruff boyfriend's face gradually turned pink with realization, then beet red in embarrassment and he dashed out the door, slamming it behind him while yelling, "Come out when you're done!"

She chuckled. _He's just too cute_…

* * *

><p>"Oh good! It fits just right! You look fabulous!" Sanada's mother exclaimed in joy as Kimiko walked into the dining room.<p>

Kimiko blushed and bowed. "Thank you so much for the lovely gift."

His mother waved her hand, dismissing the formality. "Don't be so stiff, my dear. Treat this like your home." Kimiko looked up at her in surprise. "Home?"

"We'll be your new family." Sanada wrapped an arm around her waist as his parents and grandfather gathered together and came closer.

"We can't be a substitute because your parents will always be in your heart. But while we cannot replace them, we will stick by you as your second family. Through anything." Sanada's parents nodded in agreement, smiling inwardly at their son's protective arm around Kimiko.

"I-I…" Kimiko was speechless. She began to cry again, and Sanada panicked.

"Kimiko? What's wrong?" He gestured to his mother for a tissue—she immediately ran out of the dining room to get one, dashing back in a few seconds later and handing it to Sanada. He dried his girlfriend's tears, and then held her by the shoulders, forcing her to look at him.

"Hey," he murmured, "what's wrong?"

She smiled through her tears, and Sanada was relieved to find a genuine one on her face this time. "Nothing," she choked while smiling at the same time. "I'm so grateful. Thank you so much. For everything."

She slipped out of Sanada's arms and bowed as deeply as she could to his family members—her new family now. "I'll be a handful, but please allow me to rely on you in the future."

Sanada grabbed her again and ruffled her hair to get the formalness out of her system. "Oh, you little…"

"Hey!" Kimiko protested, and Sanada's father began laughing at the comic scene. Eventually everyone joined in, filling the house with peals of laughter after a day of mourning.

Sanada glanced over at Kimiko while the "new" family joked and talked. Her eyes were tired, but beginning to regain the sparkle he so loved. She seemed to feel his gaze on her and swiveled to face him, grinning cheekily all the while. He jumped at being caught looking, and Kimiko slipped over to him when the adults' conversation became "adult-ish" talk. "Hey there," she chirped.

"Hello to you, too."

"What's up?" she asked, taking a long drink from a glass. Sanada rolled his eyes at the generic greeting.

"The ceiling," he replied drily.

Kimiko choked on her sip of water and coughed. Sanada was immediately anxious. "You all right?"

She waved him away, snickering. "Yeah, I'm fine, you worrywart. You do know that 'the ceiling' answer is really out now?"

"…" Sanada glared at her.

"Doesn't work on me," Kimiko said with evident glee in her voice. "Old man." She added impishly.

He looked away, disgruntled.

"Hey, hey," she murmured half-apologetically, making sure he wasn't actually angry at her before asking, "What were you thinking? I saw you watching me." She couldn't help but smile again.

"Not much. Just kind of…happy." Sanada couldn't describe the feeling in him right now. It was kind of fluffy (A/N: GASP! Sanada? FLUFFY? ^^) and definitely really warm.

Kimiko leaned her back against his chest without saying anything. He looked down at her and asked back, "What are you thinking right now?"

"Right now?" He nodded.

She put a finger on her chin in deep thought; Sanada watched her as she pondered. Kimiko mused for a couple minutes before bouncing off and facing him, taking his hands in hers. "Do you really want to know?" she teased, swinging their intertwined hands left and right like children often do on the playground.

"Yes." Sanada was starting to become irritated at waiting. He never was a patient person in the first place.

But the next thing took him completely by surprise. Kimiko stood up on her tiptoes, pecked him on the cheek, and when she settled back down on the ground, nonchalantly said, "I'm glad I met you; that's all."

A flash of pink ran across Sanada's features before he grinned and bent to whisper something in Kimiko's ear. She giggled happily, and jumped onto him to hug her boyfriend as tight as she could. "I'm never going to let go now, you know."

He nodded, nuzzling her hair with his nose and tightening his embrace. "I'm your prisoner. Bring on the shackles."

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><p>"<em>I'm glad I fell in love with you<em>."

PLEASE _**REVIEW**_!


	12. The Eye of the Hurricane

Hope you enjoy this one, too! REMEMBER TO REVIEW! **demon chibi hime-chan waves a stick threateningly** Now, enjoy!

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><p>"Genichirou!" Sanada spotted his girlfriend furiously waving at him from the school gates. He tentatively glanced around, and seeing no one on the tennis team, waved back.<p>

Reaching the gates, Kimiko gave him a quick hug and he gave her hair an affectionate ruffle. "What do you want to do today?" he asked her. "There's a short meeting for tennis, and then we can do whatever you want."

Kimiko pondered for a moment before her eyes lit up with excitement. "Can I come along to the meeting? And then can we go to the café from before?" She jumped up and down in anticipation, knowing that he had no reason to say no.

"That's fine…" his eyebrows knotted together in confusion. "Why do you want to come to the meeting though? You've met all of the guys right?"

"Hm…" She glanced up at him through her lashes, grinning slyly from ear to ear. "You have to introduce me to them as your official girlfriend, right?"

Sanada clearly stiffened, to Kimiko's amusement, before hiding his eyes with his cap. Taking her hand in his, he began dragging her in some direction. Kimiko squealed. "Hey! Where are you bringing me?"

"Guess." He deadpanned back.

Kimiko giggled, Sanada continuing to silently drag her hand-in-hand in the direction of the tennis courts. She'd never get sick of his reactions…

"EHHHH?"

"Yup!" Kimiko bounded in front of Sanada to bow towards the regulars. "That's it, so I'm in your hands from now on! Let's be friends, ok?" she beamed.

Akaya stumbled back onto a bench, collapsing onto it. "I can't believe this…vice captain got a girlfriend…"

Jackal patted him on the shoulder comfortingly. "Don't worry Akaya—you'll get one someday."

The younger one shrugged the kind gesture off. "I never said I wanted one."

"Mhm. Right." Jackal rolled his eyes.

Yukimura and Yanagi swung over to Sanada, slapping him on the back. "Finally, Genichirou! Thought you'd take forever."

Sanada coughed. "Well, I've exceeded your expectations now, haven't I?"

Yukimura chuckled. "Not really."

"What?"

"I saw it coming the first time you guys talked to each other—you know, about the tutoring schedule."

"…Eavesdropper."

Marui bounced over to drape an arm over his classmate. "Wait what? You're kidding! When did this start?"

As Yanagi attempted to explain while Yagyuu and Jackal stood quietly behind the curious Marui and Akaya, Yukimura dragged Kimiko off to the side.

"Well, first things first. Congratulations are in order." He hugged her affectionately, like a big brother would. "Glad you found your prince."

"Mm…he's not quite the prince charming I was anticipating, but hey—when life gives you lemons, make lemonade." Kimiko joked at first. "But really," she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "I'm grateful to God that things turned out the way they did. I don't think I could have made it through without him."

Yukimura squeezed her shoulder supportively. "We're all here for you. Don't forget that."

"Yeah, I know." She nodded gratefully. "Thanks, Seiichi."

"Now, as much as I know you hate talking about it…"

Kimiko narrowed her gaze, immediately wary with a hunch about what he wanted to discuss. "What…?"

"Have you told him about _him_?"

"No! Of course not!"

"Don't you think, that it's time to—"

"When it's time I will! It's my choice to decide when the timing's right." Kimiko flared up defensively. Yukimura immediately backed off.

"All right, all right," he calmed her down. "Just don't hide it from him. He has a right to know, you know?"

Kimiko turned away. "I get it already, so just drop it will you?"

"Ok, fine." Yukimura sighed. "Let's go back."

Sanada glanced over to his girlfriend at her approaching footsteps, surprised to see another bothered look on her face. Beginning to understand her emotions through her facial expression, he somehow flung Marui's "friendly" arm off his neck and pulled Kimiko away.

"We'll be going now, so see you all tomorrow. And don't be late!" he added sternly to the second-year. Akaya laughed nervously. "Right."

Yukimura and Yanagi yelled after the departing couple, "Have fun!"

Sanada was dearly tempted to make a crude gesture, but refrained from it, as doing so would probably damage his reputation. It was unnecessary anyways. Yanagi would probably take a photo at the exact moment and then use it to blackmail him…he shuddered in fear.

Kimiko noticed. "Hey, you cold?" She began to shrug off her thick jacket for him, but he stopped her. "No, it's nothing. If anything, you seem kind of chilly. And did something happen with Seiichi back there? You seemed to be arguing…" his voice dwindled off, allowing Kimiko time to think.

But she replied without missing a beat. "Nope. Don't worry about it."

They walked into the café at that moment and were interrupted for a bit by the waiter. After sitting down, however, Sanada could not help but continue to reflect over the troubled face she had made. "You sure?" he said once more to make sure.

Yukimura's words echoed in Kimiko's mind. _He has a right to know_…

"Well…"

Sanada prodded gently, "I'm all ears."

"There _is_ one thing that I haven't told you quite yet…"

"Yes?" He attempted to keep the impatience out of his tone.

"I have a secr—"

"Kimiko-chan?" A deep male voice reached both of their ears, and the couple swiveled their necks upwards to look at the interruption.

Sanada narrowed his eyes in confusion and frustration, while Kimiko froze in fear.

_Oh no…_

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><p>OK I HOPE THIS CHAPTER WAS GOOD! I KNOW IT FEELS LIKE A FILLER BUT WHOOT! NEW CHARACTER INTRODUCTION IN THE NEXT CHAPTER!<p>

PLEASE LOOK FORWARD TO THAT!

AND seriously guys, REVIEW PLEASE! ONEGAI!

Love and bear hugs, Hime-chan


	13. Calming the Quakes

This chapter was REALLY hard to write. -_- I was so happy about being able to introduce this guy, but dang it was harder than I expected. So it was kind of a meh chapter, but I HOPE you guys enjoy it! Please _**review**_ and tell me what you think! ^^ xoxo Hime-chan

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><p>Kimiko looked up and froze in fear. <em>Oh no<em>…

The young man smirked. "Hey there, Kimiko-chan. Miss me?"

"No, I haven't," Kimiko hissed like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. Sanada could imagine her with haunches rising and fur puffing up. Had it not been for the tense atmosphere of the current situation, he might have burst out laughing.

Instead, Sanada looked back up at the intruder, examining him. Possibly about his height, dark brown hair, tan, with a hidden type of muscularity. Sanada then looked into the young man's eyes, and jumped a bit in surprise.

Blue eyes?

After the young man said something (Sanada hadn't been really paying attention to his words) Kimiko slammed her hands down on the table and stood, startling both boys, though the intruding one had the hint of a lingering sneer on his face.

She glanced at her boyfriend, their eyes meeting; seeing the fury in her body language, he nodded just slightly. _Go and do whatever you have to do_, he said with that single gesture. He wouldn't question her now. He trusted her, and there would be time for plenty of answers—later.

Her eyes were grateful for a second before turning icy as she glared at the boy still standing by the table. Gripping him by the elbow (purposely digging in her nails as hard as she could in the process), she dragged him off outside the café, not wanting to disturb the other customers.

After watching the mysterious young man be dragged out the entrance, Sanada tried to settle down and not to care, but ended up straining his neck to look out the window. He could barely glimpse the two outside the café, but at least he'd rest a bit easier since he could see what was going on.

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><p>Kimiko now flung the boy's elbow out of her grip, looking at her hand in disgust, as if he was an infectious disease. After wiping her hand on her uniform, she scowled at the boy again.<p>

"What the hell have you come for, Dameon?"

Dameon whistled, unfazed. "Language, little princess."

Kimiko's hand instinctively balled into a fist. What she would do to just wipe that damn smirk off his face…

"I've come for you, of course," Dameon sneered. "We're destined for each other, remember?"

"I don't ever recall agreeing to that joke of a marriage interview!"

"I know."

She narrowed her eyes. What could he have up his sleeve?

"But your parents did."

"WHAT?" Kimiko's eyes went wide in disbelief, and then hardened again. "No, they didn't."

"Oh, but they did," he said confidently. "Here."

Dameon handed Kimiko an envelope, still smirking. Pinching it carefully in between her thumb and index finger to prevent the transfer of any germs, she glanced at it, eyes widening again at the familiar wax seal. Tearing the envelope open and skimming over the letter, Kimiko felt her knees go weak, and leaned onto a nearby pole to keep her balance.

"No…"

"Go ahead and deny it. You know I'm not lying now."

Kimiko looked at him. "What if I say no?" She tried to sound defiant, but she no longer had the strength to rebuke the boy.

"Oh don't worry. You'll be saying yes before that thought crosses your mind again."

Now she was pissed. Using the anger as a fuel for strength, Kimiko took three steps towards Dameon and slapped him square across the face. "Get out of here, Dameon. I don't want to see you ever again."

Dameon rubbed the stinging part of his cheek and smirked. "Whether you like it or not, I'm going to take you with me when I go back...I'll make you fall in love with me. Just you wait, Kimiko. Remember, that letter is proof of your parents' wishes. You can't win." With that, he strolled off into the other direction.

Kimiko watched helplessly at he stopped at the curb to get into a waiting Lamborghini, finally zooming off. As the black sports car became an increasingly small dot in the distance, Kimiko's shaking hand dropped the letter onto the ground and squatted down, her face in her hands as she sobbed.

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><p>Sanada jumped up from his view at the window, alarmed at seeing his girlfriend's sudden crying. Throwing down an ample amount of money for the bill, he dashed out the door, running over to Kimiko.<p>

"Kimiko!" Unsure of what to do, he squatted down along with her, rubbing her back and stroking his fingers through her hair. After a month of being with her, he had figured out what calmed her down the fastest. But this time it seemed like more than just back rubbing would be needed to stop the unceasing quakes of Kimiko's body.

Sanada gathered her in his arms, picking her up bridal style. As he began to walk towards the nearest bus stop, he felt a small tug on his shirt, and looked down at the girl in his embrace. She mumbled something inaudible.

"What, Kimiko?" Sanada strained to hear his girlfriend.

She gripped his shirt to raise herself to his ear level and said, "The letter."

Sanada looked around, and noticed the letter that the young man had given Kimiko on the ground. Squatting down to pick it up, his eyes caught the first few words. "To our dear Kimiko."

Assuming immediately that her parents had left her a will (and thus her tears), he quickly folded the letter up and slipped it back into the envelope, dusting off both paper items. This was private, and even though he was her boyfriend she needed her own space, especially at this time…

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><p>Kimiko opened her eyes and sat up groggily, blinking to get the dry feeling out of her eyes. "W-wha.." She glanced around her surroundings, eyes now wide, awake with surprise. <em>I'm back in my room<em>. _How_…?

Kimiko shifted her legs to get out of the bed, and then froze when she bumped into something…kind of warm? Glancing downwards, she almost jumped in shock before smiling affectionately. She reached out to ruffle her boyfriend's hair, admiring his sleeping face as he breathed deeply in and out.

Bending over to reach his face, she gave him a gentle peck on the temple. "Thank you for watching over me."

Getting out of bed, careful not to wake Sanada, she got dressed and left her room, taking her letter and closing the door quietly behind her. She slipped noiselessly out of the house, sliding the entrance door closed behind her and dashing towards the neighborhood bus stop.

Sanada sat up and looked at the now closed door. "Kimiko…" _What happened to you?_

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><p>PLEASE REVIEWWWWW! I'M BEGGING YOU!<p>

|  
>V<p> 


	14. Let the Nightmare Begin Part I

Everyone, thank you for reading my story thus far! I hope everyone had a safe and sound Christmas/Kwanzaa/Hanukkah and a Happy New Year!

I apologize for not posting earlier, but as many who chose to PM me know (thank you, by the way), I was literally swamped with schoolwork. There were actually piles of work several feet high on my desk -_- can you believe it? Yeah, I can't either.

BUT! Here's the reward for waiting so patiently and continuing to support me for all this time. I really love all of you guys for sticking with me so far, and I hope you will continue to read/review for me! Read: REVIEW PLEASE! xD

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except Moriyama Kimiko and Dameon.

Now, please enjoy after several weeks of nothing: Chapter …12 I think?

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><p>Yukimura opened the door, jumping backwards in surprise. "Kimiko? What are you doing here?"<p>

"Ahaha…" Kimiko shrugged in a half-hearted attempt to act cheerful. "Here I am!"

As the usual tears began to gather, Yukimura placed a warm hand on Kimiko's head and drew her into a brotherly hug. "Hey, save me the tears. You know I can't stomach a woman's crying. Especially yours."

He smiled at the sound of his childhood friend attempting to silence her sobs, alternatively hiccupping and sniffling. "Come on in." He pulled her in gently, closing the door shut behind them as they walked away with a dexterous backwards tap of his foot.

"Sit down for a bit. I'll get you some tea."

"Okay" was the puppy-like obedient response.

Yukimura went into the kitchen, moving immediately to the phone and slipping it quietly off its hook. Pushing a few quick buttons, he brought the receiver to his ear and whispered to the person on the other line, "Get over here. Pronto."

"_Wha_—"

Yukimura did not bother to wait for the other's response, simply hanging it back onto the receiver and proceeding to make Kimiko's favorite teatime snacks.

"Here you go," Yukimura beamed as he set down a few small platefuls of food.

"Seiichi!" Kimiko laughed delightedly with a full-blown grin. "You shouldn't have!"

Green tea. Mochi bits. Ice cream. French bread. And her favorite cream parfait.

"It was quick to whip up." _And you know I like to spoil you_. He winked at her.

Kimiko laughed. "Thank you—" She was interrupted by the doorbell.

Yukimura's ears perked. "About time." He rushed over hurriedly to the entrance, opening it quickly for the newest arrival. "What took you so long?"

Kimiko strained her ears as the newcomer's voice floated closer and closer.

"Sorry, the train I got on somehow got stuck on the wrong railroad."

"Is that even possible?"

A short silence. Perhaps a shrug? "Don't ask me. Tell the conductors that." As the two boys emerged from the shadows of the hallway into the dining room, Kimiko stared at the boy who had arrived before launching herself into the air.

"Mitsu-kun!"

Tezuka grunted slightly at the new baggage hanging from around his neck, currently positioned on his back with her hands contentedly playing with the slick hair on the top of his head. He groaned. "Kimiko, do you never listen?"

"Make me."

"…" The strict captain had nothing on him. _I've never wanted a cockroach so much in my life…_

Yukimura chuckled at Tezuka's disgruntled expression. "Bear with it, Tezuka. It's nothing new."

Tezuka nodded, a smile teasing at the corner of his lips before slipping back into the shadows and allowing his usual frown to regain its rightful place. "So, why did you call me?"

Kimiko halted her chimpanzee-imitations on Tezuka's hair for a moment and looked at Yukimura. "Seiichi. What did you do?"

"Hey, there's no reason to use that accusing tone already, is there?"

Kimiko continued to silently glare at the Rikkaidai captain.

"All right, all right," Seiichi forfeited, raising his hands in defeat. "I'm sorry." _Not_, he added under his breath. "But it seemed like you needed both of us, no?"

Kimiko paused, miffed. "Well then," she said, "why didn't you call Genichirou?"

"Oh? I can right now if you wish." Yukimura reached an arm out.

Kimiko jumped up and shoved his arm away. "NO!" she yelled, spreading her arms out in an attempt to guard Yukimura from his own phone.

Yukimura returned to his original position. "See? Told you." Kimiko pouted, but he continued, "The fact that you came to me in the first place means that you don't want Genichirou to know, otherwise he's the first option isn't he? Therefore, calling Genichirou would be quite stupid."

Tezuka nodded in agreement with the logic. "Kimiko, you're too easy to read."

His cousin bonked him on the head. "And you're a social klutz."

A glaring contest ensued as the two locked hard gazes for pointing out the weak points they were trying to hide…until Yukimura put one hand on each of the contestant's faces and pushed them apart. "That is enough."

"Haiii" Kimiko sat back down in her chair, and Tezuka coughed before straightening his posture and settling back down in his own seat. Yukimura shook his head. _How does she transform that rock of a captain into a child again?_

"Now." Yukimura plopped down in another comfortable piece of furniture that resembled a wooden beanbag. "What did you need us for?"

Kimiko opened her mouth, but no words came out. Closing it for a while and thinking, she opened, closed, opened, and closed again. Finally, she shook her head in defeat and looked both of them in eye. "Dameon's back."

Yukimura and Tezuka were silent for a few seconds, looking at each other. The former then asked in confusion, "So?"

"What do you mean, 'so?'"

"I don't get how that's going to change anything. That marriage interview didn't go smoothly at all; your parents allowed you to choose, there's no way that you have any relation to that prick anymore. If anything, -"

Tezuka cut Yukimura off. "Kimiko, did your parents change their will?" His voice was demanding, but more urgent than harsh.

Kimiko's eyes widened and she turned to her cousin. "How did you know that?"

"My parents once mentioned that my aunt and uncle, so your parents, would leave behind their wish for you to marry Dameon in case they died before they approved of the man you chose."

"…" Kimiko could only nod in acknowledgment of the truth. "That's correct."

A dreadful silence fell, each person enveloped in a swirl of thoughts, the males' thoughts mixed with some over PG-13 vocabulary.

"That's ridiculous!" Seiichi finally shattered the dark tranquility, slamming two tightly clenched fists on the table and causing Kimiko's teacup to jump about a foot into the air. She rushed to save the ceramic ware before it clattered to shards on the ground, barely catching it and sighing in relief before placing it back on its pretty little plate.

"Seiichi, calm down, please." Kimiko tried to suppress Yukimura's outburst of anger.

"How can I be calm?" the Rikkaidai captain roared in frustration. "That man took you for granted and broke your soul in two!"

Tezuka was silent, but Kimiko could sense a similarly angry aura coming off of him and the iciness of her cousin's eyes.

She said nothing in reply but closed her eyes; bit-by-bit, the banished painful memories began to resurface.

"_Ne, Kimi-chan?" _

"_Hai, mother." _

_Her mother gestured to the young man sitting at the table in front of them. Kimiko stared in awe at his grace and the strong atmosphere around him. "Who…is that?" _

"_He's your fiancée, sweetheart." _

"_WHAT?" Kimiko shrieked, her shrill voice ringing through the banquet room reserved for the occasion. The young man and his apparent guardian jumped, startled. Looking towards the doorway, they smiled and then came over, the younger immediately kneeling to kiss Kimiko's hand. Lifting his head, he winked suggestively at her. _

"_It is an honor to meet you, milady." _

Milady?_ Kimiko thought, attempting to scold herself for gawking at the man while blushing at his suave speech style. _

Kimiko visibly bristled at the memory. Yukimura looked over at her, a constantly changing mixture of anger and sadness on his expression.

_After their first meeting, Kimiko and Dameon went on several dates, seemingly getting closer day by day. Kimiko was constantly on the phone with Dameon, and for the time being, she could not wish for anything more. _

_But Yukimura wasn't convinced. "Kimi-chan. I don't trust that guy." _

"_Seiichi, I know you're worried about me, but Dameon is perfect. He can't be bad."_

I hope it's my imagination, too… _Yukimura thought nervously. Unfortunately, his and Kimiko's worst nightmare would soon become reality; the fateful days were not far off…_

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><p>REVIEW PLEASE! I NEED TO KNOW IF YOU GUYS LIKE THE PLOT OR NOT!<p> 


	15. Let the Nightmare Begin Part II

Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis and the original characters, just Kimiko, Kiyomi, and Kimiko's father. Oh, and Dameon.

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><p><em>A knock sounded on the German residency's front door, the noise just barely audible over the pitter-patter of the rain. Kiyomi Moriyama went over to open up, noting the sunset's vibrant colors through the windowpane. <em>I wonder who it is?_ she mused._

_She expected a surprise guest or someone along those lines—her husband really did have a bad habit of not informing her when he asked someone over. But to her utmost surprise and dismay, she found her daughter, the sole heir of the Moriyama dojos, soaked from head to toe in rain, chaotically dressed in a slightly torn dress and mussed up hair, and simply standing there like a ragdoll. _

"_Kimiko!" she reached out and held her daughter by the shoulders, looking at her up and down. "What happened to you?" _

_Kimiko said nothing and did nothing except to fall forward in her mother's arms, limp and as lifeless as a broken stuffed animal. Her mother could hear Kimiko panting, and she felt her daughter's forehead, gasping at the pure heat radiating off of her skin._

"_Oh no…" Quickly shutting the door behind her, she put Kimiko down on a nearby chair. She soon returned with warm blankets and a change of clothes. Moving as fast as possible, Kiyomi unbuttoned Kimiko's blouse to switch her to some dry apparel, but she immediately froze. Gently tracing trails of darkened spots with her index finger, Kiyomi cursorily examined her daughter's entire body. _Bruises?

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><p><em>A young man picked up the phone call. "Yukimura residence."<em>

"_Seiichi-kun?"_

"_Auntie, good afternoon." Yukimura raised an eyebrow from the unexpected call. "Can I help you?" _

"_Could you come to our house right now?" the older lady pleaded, a sense of urgency ringing through her strained voice. _

"_What's wrong?" _

"_Kimiko. Something's not right—she won't talk to me. She's currently curled up in a ball right now, and all she does is yell 'don't touch me' and 'leave me alone!' I don't know what to do!" Kiyomi wailed, beginning to panic once more. _

_Yukimura's fingers clenched the phone. "I understand. I will be there as soon as possible." _

"_Please, Seiichi-kun. Hurry!" Kiyomi pleaded a last time before hanging up. _

_Yukimura slowly removed the receiver from his ear, his arm dropping to his side. His fingers were curled tightly around the phone and his brow knit together in worry. Could it possibly…? _

_He shook his head to clear his mind, going instead for the alternative choice of immediately leaving the house to go find his friend. He didn't want to consider the possibilities of what had happened—he would just have to see for himself how to help her. _

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><p><em>"No! Don't come near me!" Kimiko shrieked as her mother once again attempted a step towards her. Kiyomi immediately took 3 steps back to appease her daughter, looking to Yukimura for guidance instead. <em>

_Yukimura was appalled at the state his friend was in. Kimiko was a deathly pale white, curled up in a ball, with disheveled hair, and…her eyes. Yukimura's heart wrenched with the look in Kimiko's usually bright eyes. They reflected betrayal, grief, fear. Fear of pain, fear of rejection, fear of trusting anyone and anything around her. He did not move for a while, simply looking at Kimiko. _

_She eventually realized that he was not going to near her, and she met his eyes. They silently locked gazes for about a minute, and then Yukimura began to quietly speak. He soothingly comforted Kimiko like one does with an abandoned puppy. She listened; her mind was already tired from the whirling flurry of events called reality. "Don't worry, Kimi-chan, I'm just here to help." He took a step towards her, and seeing no adverse reaction, continued. _

"_I won't do anything." Two more steps._

"_You can trust me." He extended his hand out to her, and she looked at it. Just looked at it for one long second…and then slowly, with a shaking dainty hand, she grasped Yukimura's fingers. _

_He let out a sigh of relief before sitting down on her bed and pulling her into a gentle hug. "I've got you now." He felt a hand tightly clutching his shirt, and he patted her head. "You can cry now. Everything's going to be ok." _

_Yukimura smiled sadly as he felt the warm drops on the front of his shirt and the sporadic jerks of Kimiko as her bottled up emotions finally poured out to him. He looked over to Kiyomi, who was leaning against the wall in relief as well. She bowed deeply before rushing out. Yukimura hoped it was to call her husband—Kimiko's father needed to know about this. _

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><p><em>Tezuka patted Kimiko's hair as she slept, observing his cousin's sleeping face with a gentle smile on his lips. "Rest well Kimiko." He slipped back out of her room, closing the door quietly and walking to the living room with Yukimura, who had been waiting outside. <em>

"_So what do you think?" Yukimura asked. Tezuka knew what he was asking about, and sighed. _

"_You're already accusing Dameon, Yukimura?" _

"_Of course! She told me that she had plans to be with him all of today! Kiyomi-san told me that she came home with torn clothes and looking worse than _that_. Who else could it be?" Yukimura was furious. What was Tezuka thinking? _

_But it was the Seigaku captain's turn to be angry. He grabbed Yukimura by the shoulders, telling him, "Just hold on, will you! You have to calm down—for Kimiko and for yourself! If even we lose our cool, who's going to take care of her?"_

_Yukimura glared at him momentarily, but closed his eyes and took a deep breath through his nose. "You're right," he conceded. "She needs us." _

"_Better?"_

"_Yeah." _

"_All right," Tezuka nodded approvingly. He knew how hard it was for Yukimura to stay calm when it came to Kimiko. He himself cared very much for his bouncy little cousin. "That said," he continued from before he had to yell at the other boy, "I don't trust Dameon, it's just that I want to hear what happened to Kimiko _from_ Kimiko. We cannot afford to jump to conclusions."_

"_True. But I feel that we're missing a huge part of the puzzle even now…" Yukimura was interrupted by Kiyomi, who had arrived back in the living room with hot tea and some snacks to eat for the boys. She knelt halfway down at the coffee table to place the food on the table. _

"_She had bruises," Kimiko's mother said quietly after setting the food down. The two boys stared at her, unsure if they heard correctly._

"_Pardon?" Tezuka's eyes were narrowed. _

"_When I changed her clothes, I noticed bruises all over her. I could tell that some were because she had fallen somewhere, but some other ones…they seemed like…" she looked at the two boys' hands, picking them up and examining them. "About the size and shape of your hands. They were vague, but there appeared hand-like bruises all over her, especially on her wrists and one on her neck." Kiyomi was trying hard not to cry, and Tezuka awkwardly patted the older woman on the back. _

"_We will do whatever we can, auntie. Please trust us." _

"_I do. Please, I don't know what happened to her." Although she could guess… "I leave Kimiko in your hands. I will see her when she wants to see me; until then, please take care of her." Kiyomi did a deep bow, her nose only inches away from the floor. The boys bowed back; they would figure out a way. _

_Somehow, they would get her back. The Kimiko that all of them loved. _


	16. Nightmarish Reality

_It was dark, bleak to the point of suffocation. Black streamed in through nonexistent windows. A cloud of gloom floated down to intoxicate the atmosphere. And in the midst of everything, a little girl called out to the surrounding shadows. "Hello?" she ventured in a fearful, tiny voice. _

_At first, no one answered. _

"_Anybody?" she asked one more time._

_And out of nowhere, she heard low chuckles reply to her calls, sending shivers up her spine. She shivered, curling up protectively and hugging herself, eyes stretched wide. _

_The chuckles grew. The little girl looked around frantically, trying to pinpoint where they were coming from. Through the darkness, her eyes discerned some figures approaching her. The voices louder. Closer. Footsteps heavier. Faster._

_They loped over to her, sneering and leering. She backed up on her hands, trying to keep out of their grasp. The dark figures extended out their hands towards her, fingers outstretched and still chuckling. As they were about to touch her, the little girl shut her eyes, shaking her head. "Don't come any closer!" _

_The fingers inched closer. Three inches left. Two. One. _

_Her eyes flashed open, and she screamed. _

"_No-!" _

* * *

><p>Kimiko shot up in her bed, drenched in cold sweat and shaking. She vaguely heard nearing, pounding footsteps, and immediately clutched her blanket to her body.<p>

"No." she panicked. The images resurfaced in her mind; she placed her hands over her ears in some vain attempt to block them out. "NO NO NO!"

Yukimura and Tezuka flung open the door. "Kimiko!" They rushed over to her bedside, Tezuka standing over protectively, Yukimura kneeling down. Yukimura grabbed her shaking hands from her head and held them.

Through a vision blurred from unconsciously spilled tears, Kimiko looked at her best friend and her cousin. She looked down at her hands, Yukimura and Tezuka standing by her, their eyes focusing on her. _We're here_, they told her without saying a word. _Even if Genichirou can't be here, we're here by your side_.

She had never really believed in God or any deity really. But if they were the ones that had sent these angels… _Thank you, God…._

* * *

><p>Yukimura glanced at the clock for the twentieth time that hour. His eyes were trained on the teacher, but they were unfocused—his mind was obviously elsewhere.<p>

Kimiko had insisted on going to school (after skipping a day, as demanded by her two friends), despite an obvious lack of sleep. Much to Yukimura's dismay, Tezuka had reluctantly allowed her to, leaving her in his hands.

Absentmindedly staring at the board, Yukimura's forehead wrinkled. Kimiko had clearly forced herself to remember what had happened back then. So, now what?

Sanada was going to find out eventually—Kimiko had to be one of the worst liars on the planet. Not to mention, he had already met Daemon…when he learned of _that_ incident, God knows what he would do…

And speak of the devil, the moment the thought crossed his mind, Yukimura felt a short poke in the middle of his back. He turned his head slightly to look at Sanada sitting behind him. His friend had a deeper-than-usual furrow in his brow and, after a quick look to affirm the teacher was not looking, discreetly flicked a piece of paper into Yukimura's desk.

The captain raised an eyebrow. Sanada passing notes? Reaching into his desk and taking out the cleanly folded paper and opened it apprehensively. His eyes flickered over the few words of neat handwriting and he gave a mental sigh. _Now what, indeed_.

The bell rang. To Yukimura, that was bad news. Mentally sighing again, he turned around, leaning against his desk and facing Sanada.

"So. You wanted to talk," he stated wearily.

"She was with you yesterday. Skipping class." It was clearly a statement, but Yukimura knew Sanada well enough to realize the question captured within the cold words.

"It's not my place to tell you why, Genichirou," Yukimura gave a rise and fall of his shoulders as a reply.

Sanada held back a growl of frustration. He gave Yukimura one last look, and even his friend was taken aback by the silent animosity in Sanada's eyes. Sanada seemed to open his mouth to say something, but decided against it; he turned on his heel and left Yukimura, who was still slightly stunned.

Because he saw, along with the resentment and sadness in Sanada's eyes, the clear message: _why are you hiding things from me?_

He bit his cheek in frustration, staring guiltily out the window at the grey sky. _It's not like I want to, either_…

* * *

><p>She walked out of the gates, cheerfully chattering with some off her classmates, when she heard someone angrily shout her name. "Oh no," she groaned under her breath. She recognized that voice.<p>

"Kimiko!" Sanada shouted once more, charging over to the group. Unaware of the situation, her friends giggled and began walking away, one of them nudging her playfully in the ribs before dashing off to join the departing others. She managed to give them a half-hearted grimace-smile combination before turning to face her boyfriend.

She knew after avoiding him in math and history that he was going to be suspicious, but, for once in her life, she wished school would go on forever, just so she could avoid this conversation.

But she realized that, somewhere in the back of her mind, she always did wonder. She wondered how their relationship would change after this whole mess. If their relationship would change. How Dameon would factor in. What would happen to her? Them?

Sanada stopped his charging like a bull stance and halted in front of Kimiko. She took a few moments to compose herself and then looked up at him with a wide grin. He seemed rather surprised at first, but immediately his eyes turned stern, and he stared at her for a good few minutes—no words, no motions, just silently gazing at her.

And then, in a very un-Sanada-like fashion, he took her faltering grinning cheeks, pinched them, and pulled them outwards until she looked like a circus clown.

"Ow ow ow!" Kimiko pulled at Sanada's hands to make him stop. "Cut it out!"

He let go, her cheeks snapping back into place. As she rubbed her sore jaw, he asked, "What aren't you telling me?"

Kimiko froze visibly before returning to her smile. "What do you mean?"

"You missed school yesterday, you came to school with Seiichi today, you were blatantly avoiding me in math and history class. Don't tell me I'm off the mark, because we've known each other long enough, Kimiko. What is going on?"

She did not say anything for a while, just turned her head upwards to look at the darkening sky and the gathering clouds, contemplating, thinking.

Just as Sanada became fed up with waiting, Kimiko took a step towards him and bowed, causing him to take two steps backward in surprise.

"I'm sorry." Kimiko's voice shook as she apologized.

Sanada was unsure of what to do or say. "Kimiko…" he sighed. "I didn't chase you all the way here just to hear an apology."

She was silent.

"Do you know how worried I was? How worried my family was?"

Still silence.

He put a finger under her chin and tilted her face towards him. "Hey."

She bit her lip and averted her eyes, the feeling of guilt written all over her face.

"Hey," Sanada said in a gentler tone, "look here. Look at me."

Reluctantly, her eyes turned to meet his; but once they had met, she couldn't turn them away. Sanada's eyes were a warm, chocolate brown—filled with a kindness and patience so unlike him that Kimiko could not help but to keep gazing into them.

"I—" Sanada began to speak, breaking the silence. Kimiko looked at him, slightly afraid but slightly curious of his next words.

"I…was so worried after you saw _him_," the words blew out of his mouth like a rush of wind, as if he was confessing some horrid sin. "I was so confused. I thought that you had left me. I resented you for not telling me anything. Yet, at the same time, I was worried again. I didn't know what to do. I—" Kimiko put her fingers to his lips to stop the oncoming flood of words.

After she took off her finger, Sanada looked at her for a few seconds before bringing her into a warm embrace, his strong arms circling around her and locking her to him. "I love you," he whispered into her ear. "So much."

Kimiko smiled. _I bet no one will ever know that off the courts, Sanada can be really insecure_. She reached up and took his hat off, putting it on her own head, while gently fluffing up his hat-hair.

And finally, it was her turn. Whether she was ready or not, Sanada deserved to know. As a couple, it is important to be caring, patient, and honest. Sanada had given her all of him; now, it was time for her to return the favor.

She pulled away from Sanada, almost laughing at the deprived-puppy look in his eyes. After placing his hat back on his head, she grasped both of his hands with her smaller ones. She played with his fingers and traced the blisters on his hands. He waited patiently until she quietly asked, "Would you…like to hear a story?"

"Whenever you're ready to tell me, I'm all ears."

_**PRETTY PRETTY PLEASE- REVIEW!**_


	17. Sayonara, Prince Charming

Disclaimer: 1) I don't own Prince of Tennis. 2) Due to some unpleasant themes and potentially offensive content, parental advisory is recommended.

Dedication to a very good friend of mine for helping me through the nitty gritty details. Thanks JTP!

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><p>"<em>Would you...like to hear a story?"<em>

At Sanada's kind reply, Kimiko brought him over to a nearby bench in the school's courtyard, and gestured for him to sit down. She fell silent again and looked down at their hands, musing. Sanada waited patiently...or as patiently as he could manage. He had held on for this long, a few minutes wouldn't kill him.

A few minutes passed. And yes, though he was still alive... Sanada almost began fidgeting like a young child, when Kimiko finally began to speak.

Initially, the words came out choppily, like a machine first set to work. But as she saw Sanada listening with undivided attention to her, quietly, respectfully, her inhibitions flew away and the memories came pouring out like a torrent of water.

She explained how she and Daemon met. How she fell in love for the first time. Their first date. Their first kiss. Everything.

"And then-" Kimiko was about to continue when she caught sight of Sanada's face. He also noticed her glance at him, and in a strained voice, ushered her to keep going. "Go on."

"Genichirou. What's wrong?"

"Nothing." _Again_, she thought. _That same voice_.

Something hit her then, forcing her to restrain an imminent giggle from bubbling up in the back of her throat. Almost gleefully, Kimiko asked, "Genichirou. Are you _jealous_?"

"No." This time a stern reply came back quickly. Too quickly.

Kimiko's grin grew wider. Sanada did not say anything; he simply averted his gaze from hers.

She leaned over and pecked him on the cheek. He stifled a grunt of surprise and looked at her with slightly widened eyes.

Showing him yet another cheeky grin, Kimiko said, "What are you getting so worked up for?" She lovingly ran her fingers along his jawline and, gently pulling his chin down, forced his eyes to meet hers.

"Daemon was never part of me, and he never will be. That Prince Charming is gone. For good. But you..." her eyes shone as she continued, "you will always have a part of me. I am _yours_."

He took her hand from his face, almost cradling it in his much larger one. "And I am yours," he said plainly in response. But that was enough for her. Kimiko knew that behind those words was so much more emotion than even she could possibly imagine. And although he may not ever say it, he told her through his own ways. He always did. She smiled to herself before deciding to continue with the narration.

"So...you now know the sugar and spice part of the beginning...but it didn't turn out the way I-or my parents, or Seiichi," she added, "thought it would."

She paused, gathering her thoughts. This time, Sanada was completely willing to wait. He squeezed her hands assuringly, giving her time, giving her strength.

Kimiko smiled gratefully, gently returning the gesture. "Everything was going well," she said, "and one day, he promised to bring me to the amusement park nearby that had just been finished."

Sanada was slightly confused, but nodded. That much he could comprehend-just a regular date (as much as the idea of Kimiko going on a date with someone else displeased him greatly).

"So...he came to pick me up, and my mom saw me off with him around noon, after lunch. And we got to the park with no problems, spent an entire day playing and laughing-" Sanada's brow furrowed deeply at this. Kimiko chuckled and kissed his cheek again.

"But on the way home, we ran into a group of Daemon's friends. He introduced me to them, and one of them invited us to a drink or two. I didn't really want to, since it was getting late, but the guy was quite insistent on treating us...you know, to celebrate our engagement."

As Sanada felt a bad premonition about the oncoming event, he noticed Kimiko beginning to shake, her fingers twitching ever so slightly in his palm. He held her hands in his, and she nodded in thanks.

"So, he brought us over to the nearest bar, and we ordered our drinks. I at first had a oolong tea, but somewhere along the way, someone must have mixed up my drink, on purpose or by accident-it's not like it matters." Kimiko's tone turned bitter.

"Not now, and definitely not then, I couldn't hold my alcohol, and I felt myself falling asleep after feeling woozy for quite a while."

"And Daemon...?" Sanada's voice was hard, at this point. He could imagine where this was going.

"He was awake still when I passed out. Drunk, yes. Passed out, no."

"And when I woke up," she choked, but clenched her fists and stopped herself from crying. She was determined this time, just this time, not to cry. She wouldn't let Daemon get the best of her. Not now. "When I woke up, I was sprawled on the ground in an alleyway-they were gone. He was gone. And the only thing I had left was my purse with nothing left in it."

Sanada stood up. Kimiko hurriedly jumped up from the bench as well, worry etched across her face when she saw the pure fury burning in her boyfriend's eyes. Though he was careful not to squeeze his hands, seeing as her hands were in his, every other part of him was rigid with anger.

"Hey." He did not look at her.

"Hey," she coaxed, turning his face to her. "Calm down. It's okay. _I'm_ okay," she soothed.

"How can you be?" Sanada roared. "He-that monster-"

"I know," she murmured, "I know." It was as if their roles had been reversed-the victim was now the one comforting the listener. Sanada restrained himself. Keep calm. Keep calm. As if she knew he was fighting the anger threatening to overflow within himself, Kimiko wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I'm here now. I'm okay," she repeated. Somehow-God knows how-Sanada regained control over his emotions, and sat back down, letting out a breath that he had been unknowingly holding.

After he settled back down, Kimiko intertwined their fingers and kept going. "Because of that, Mom and Dad were furious-they canceled the engagement, and flew me back to Japan..."

"Along with Seiichi," Sanada added.

"And Mitsu-kun," Kimiko added. "We had already been a trio with a reputation throughout the neighborhood, but after that..." she smiled ruefully. "we were pretty much inseparable, particularly because they were worried about me having to get used to Japan again. In the end,-"

"Wait." Sanada held up a hand to stop her, causing Kimiko to look in confusion at him.

"Yes?"

"When was this?"

"Oh." Kimiko thought for a bit. "Well, we're third years right now, right? So that would make it...about the summer between middle school third year and high school first year."

"An arranged marriage as a middle schooler?" Sanada could not keep the incredulity out of his voice.

"Genichirou, you know as well as I do how important continuing the bloodline can be for traditional families. You're lucky you didn't have to, but that's probably because you're a male."

"I suppose so..." Sanada grumbled. As much as he understood the logic, it didn't sit well with him. Or maybe the fact Kimiko had to marry didn't sit well with him. Either way, it was not okay.

Suddenly aware that Kimiko was waiting patiently for him to finish digesting the information, he gestured to her. "Sorry, keep going. You were saying?"

"Right. So, in the end, I didn't get married, I came home to Japan, and never saw that..." she caught herself before a very colorful word could escape, "_man_ again."

"But how were you..." Sanada tried to find the right words, "okay?" He struggled to find a more appropriate word, and at the same time maintain a diction that was sensitive to her feelings.

"I wasn't." She said quietly. "Not for a long time."

Her gaze lifted up towards the sky, her eyes following the slowly moving clouds. "Not for a long time..." she repeated. "Seiichi and Mitsu-kun really must have had a hard time making me open up again. It was hard for them...and for me. For at least a year, I avoided contact with any boys or men except for them-actually, even them, in the beginning. Because until a year had passed, I wholeheartedly hated any male-for exactly that. It really sucks to admit this now," she grimaced, "but in my eyes, at the time, being male was a sin."

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><p>PLEASE READ AND <em><strong>REVIEW<strong>_! OH AND ALERTS/FAVORITES TOO ^^ OF COURSE REVIEWS ARE BEST! XOXOXO—hime-chan!


	18. Ready or Not, Here Life Comes

Thank you to all my very supportive readers! Love you all! And for any Hyotei/Atobe lovers, I have a new AtobeOC story called "What the Wind Brings!" Please do read and give feedback-I'd love to hear from you all! ^^

And...wow, it's been a while since I've done this ritual.

Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis or its characters; I only reserve rights to Moriyama Kimiko and Daemon.

* * *

><p>"<em>Being male was a sin<em>."

"_male...s__in_"

"a _sin_"

"_sin..."_

Genichirou stared at Kimiko, temporarily speechless. Her words ran through his head over and over, resonating in his ears.

The thing was, his brain understood the logic, but he just couldn't picture it. Kimiko, a boy-hater?

All right, true, he knew she was cold to people she didn't like (he knew that personally), but… he shook his head slowly. The Kimiko he knew held grudges, but she wouldn't hate people in categories.

_She wouldn't..._ Just as he thought that, Sanada glanced at Kimiko and took in—her pursed lips, the firm set of her clenched jaw, the severe expression in her eyes—and knew he was wrong. _No…she really _could_._

And for Pete's sake, no one should, would, _could_ blame her. He, for one, was not able to conjure up a single reason why anyone would. Going through that must have been like waking up one morning and finding that you had been dumped on your butt in Hell. If not worse, since you're not actually dead.

For that, he hated Daemon and wanted to help her. But did she _want_ help? She had said so herself: "it's in the past now," wasn't it?

He was angry, frustrated, sad. Because deep, deep down, he hated one other person even more than Daemon. Himself.

Where was he then for her? Ignorant of the situation. What could he do now for her? …Nothing. It was like he was extending a hand out to her, but she couldn't see it—and even if she was hurting inside, she would slap his hand away and feign strength. Or perhaps, it was because she really did possess that strength. And _that_ made him wonder-if he offered her his hand, would she ever take it?

"You're making a complicated face, Genichirou." Kimiko's voice broke into his thoughts, slightly teasing, partly worried.

"…Hn," he grunted, not making a move to change his expression. _That's because you were talking about a _you_ that I didn't know_. How did she expect him to react? "Oh I see"? Smile? Punch a wall just to show how pissed he was getting? Mm…no. As tempting as the last one was, it wasn't such a good idea.

…

…

…

Sanada let out a sigh, rubbing his left temple with one hand. Kimiko raised a questioning eyebrow at the uncharacteristic action.

"Are you all right, Genichirou?" her hand gently clasped over his.

That made him even more frustrated, but he did not say anything, for fear that Kimiko figured out the reason behind his irritation. It wasn't that she wouldn't understand, but what type of boyfriend would he be if she ended up being the one consoling _him_?

"Is that it?" he asked. "Is that the… 'story's' end?"

At his reuse of her word "story," Kimiko couldn't help but smile a bit. "Nope!" she chirped, playing along despite both of them already knowing that here she was; that yes, she _did_ become all right again.

"Seiichi and Mitsu-kun were extremely patient with me for an entire year, taking care of me in their own way. Coming over every day, sometimes staying the night with me, always spending time with me at school or on weekends when they could. Yet, they waited for _me_ to reach out to _them_ before actually interacting with me.

"And slowly but surely, bit by bit, I opened back up from my protective shell. After I had recovered for the most part, things seemed to be going perfectly fine, albeit a little lonely when my parents didn't call or those two were busy during tennis season," Kimiko admitted.

But Sanada's thoughts were elsewhere. His eyebrows rose a fraction of an inch at hearing that Yukimura showed such a kind side to his girlfriend.

The Yukimura he saw at practice, at home, at school was, to be blunt about it, not one to ever be described as, even remotely, close to _kind_. Diligent, regal: yes; passionate, even more so; but Yukimura was sometimes cruel on purpose, and—much too often for comfort—became the symbol of brutality without even realizing it.

He coughed. _Anyways_… Yukimura was not the point here. For, despite his surprise, Sanada's eyes and ears were still keen enough to discern that Kimiko wasn't done quite yet.

"…But?" he prodded, urging her to continue.

"But," she picked up from where she had paused, "he's back. Daemon's here, in Japan." Panic colored her voice and tainted her expression; her eyes were wide with distress and she was back to wringing her hands.

Sanada processed this piece of information. Daemon had seen him and Kimiko eating together and (at the memory his eyebrows furrowed once more) had completely interrupted them, angered Kimiko, made her cry, and then just left off in that stupid black Lamborghini.

_Cursed, pompous, ostentatious, moronic, atrociously expensive Lamborghini_, he said to himself. _Oh, and add goat-droppings-colored to the description, too_. Directing his mind back to the question he had, he asked Kimiko, "So?" But he had already known about that, so why was she so worried?

She looked at him for a few moments in horror; he looked back in pure confusion. Did he say something out of line?

_Oh_. Kimiko eventually realized that Sanada didn't even have a clue as to what had happened the day Daemon had appeared in front of them, and immediately rearranged her facial expression. "My bad," she twisted a lock of hair thoughtfully, "it slipped my mind that you don't know."

"Don't know what?" came the bewildered reply laced with pout-worthy resent of being left out.

Despite her gloom, Kimiko couldn't help but crack a grin at the pout threatening to surface on Sanada's face. Sanada, pouting? Yeah, it happened, but only she got to see it. As that thought crossed her mind, Kimiko felt a slightly selfish pride. Inside, she danced a gleeful jig and jeered at the fan girls that used to irritate her so much before. _He's mine_, she cheered silently. _Only mine_.

"You don't know what went on between me and Daemon that day next to the cafe, is what I meant."

She was met by a silent, but clearly expectant look from her boyfriend. _Go on_, his eyes said to her.

At this, Kimiko bit her lip. Go figure that he'd expect her to explain what on earth had happened that day. It was written all over his face that he was waiting to hear a full-length detailed report, practically. But how could she tell him? _Him_, of all people.

Sanada Genichirou was _the_ Emperor—part of Rikkaidai's renowned tennis team, vice captain and a regular, the silent force in the Three Demons. He was a pillar. He was born to be a leader. He was known for being impeccably strong in more than just the physical sense.

But despite all that… Kimiko squeezed her hands together. Despite what people said, what they thought, or how they put him on a pedestal…Sanada was _human_. If having him as her companion and boyfriend had taught her anything, it was that he felt emotions just as much as the next person, if not even more so. Affection for his loved ones, responsibility for the team, camaraderie for friendly rivals, and oftentimes, frustration with himself. It was just that, unlike most people, he didn't let other people in on how he was feeling.

And to that human being, at this moment probably the one closest to her heart—to tell him that she, the girl he chose, the one with the other part of the necklace, his _girlfriend_, was engaged to someone else…what would happen to him?

She didn't want to know. But did she have a choice?

People had told her tens of thousands of times: when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

Well, this had to be one of the damned largest lemons she's ever going to get, now, isn't it.

She would tell him. Because he was hers only…and she was his only. He deserved to know.

_Ready or not, here life comes_, Kimiko thought drily. And who was she to stop it?

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><p>AND CLIFFY! XP sorry! I just wanted to let you guys have <em>something<em>, considering the fact that I haven't updated in ages again..I'll start writing the next chappie now, I promise! But it'll probably suck more than this one since she'll actually be revealing what the heck is going on to Sanada, and for now, even I'm having trouble imagining how he'd respond.

I hope that in this chapter, despite like 0 action, I was able to communicate across both of their mindsets and how they feel about each other. I'm starting to move towards a more reflective type of writing style, instead of just bam-bam-bam type of movement, it has inner development, too. But it's hard for me, so I'll need a lot of feedback from everyone (read: review and tell me if it works or if it's crap XD)

So stay tuned and stay hydrated for all my summer readers! For my readers in the southern hemisphere, stay warm-I hear that the cold is pretty harsh right now. I love all of you guys! Really, keep **reviewing** please—it makes me very happy XD Who knows, I might update faster when I'm happy...

Don't forget to check out my profile for new stories! ^^

~Hime-chan


	19. Glass Wall

Hey guys! I have a feeling this is starting to get so repetitive that it's sounding phony, but I'M SORRY THE UPDATE TOOK SO LONG!

Like I mentioned in the previous chapter, it was hard, and I mean _hard_ to get Sanada's reaction processed through my brain first, before writing it down. It just seems like such an un-Sanada-like situation, ya know?

Sigh. _Anyways_...I do hope you guys will review more and tell me how this chapter goes, cuz they honestly mean a lot to me. (Authors in general, actually) I'll have you know that I appreciate every one of my reviews and reviewers, and read each one at least 10 times over the course of one month, if not one _week_. XD

Love you guys so much, and here is the next chapter of the story: CH19, Glass Wall. Enjoy! (and review! XD)

Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis, only Moriyama Kimiko and Daemon. So there. XP

...oh right, and before I forget to mention, if you're feeling adventurous, remember that I have other stories on my profile too from Prince of Tennis. Recently, especially, there's been **"What the Wind Brings"** (Atobe-centric multichapter) and **"Sakura Storm"** (Sakuno-centric one shots). Hope you find something in them that you like :)

Ok, _now_ we're ready. Let's go! XD

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><p>CH19: Glass Wall<p>

"You're...not serious." Sanada's eyes clouded over, shocked at what he just heard. "That's impossible."

Kimiko stayed silent, could only look at him with those big, sad eyes of hers.

"You..." Sanada almost choked; this wasn't happening. "You're just going to let it go. You're just going to follow him, just like that," he said slowly, calmly, but his eyes still gave him away-they were glassy, unseeing. And Kimiko knew that; he was shocked beyond belief inside. The mere fact that he had to repeat things went to show exactly how shaken he was.

She bit her lip, but still said nothing, simply reached one shaky hand and placed it on his arm, silently pleading. _Please_, her eyes begged him, _please don't make this any harder_.

But the fury inside him made him blind; it would not heed; it made him lose his cool, look past her pleas. "You're just going to give up, after all that? After finally getting _free_ and finding a way to live your life, after finding-" he bit back the next word. _After finding this, _us_..._ He grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her. _Wake up_, he begged back silently, but the words that came out were so, so different.

"Where's the fight in you gone?" he bellowed, unable to find it in him to care about the distress he saw in her eyes.

"Genichirou," she yelped, "it hurts."

He loosened his grip just a little, but still kept his hands firmly on her to make sure she felt his presence, to make sure that she saw him in front of her. _He_ was with her, here, now.

Even if she was going to give everything up, he couldn't accept it with just a "Oh, I see. Have a good day" and leave it at that. They were more than that, and Sanada was scrabbling at shreds of hope; he was desperate to believe in what they had shared, this emotion that held them together, to believe in _them. _

A half year ago there's no way he'd ever imagine entertaining something as frivolous as a relationship. Tennis, school, and kendo. That was everything, and everything else was nothing, irrelevant. But after spending only a short amount of time with her, he had felt something inside take a complete 180 degree turn. Now, _entertaining_ was the wrong word to describe this; before he knew it, she had become someone absolutely irreplaceable to him.

Like a friend but even closer, like family but even more understanding... Admittedly, they both had their individual faults, and gave each other more trouble than could ever be accounted for, but they made up for it with what they had in common and what they did for each other. Right?

That was what people called 'love,' wasn't it?

But then if this was love, and they were supposedly 'the right ones' for each other...then how could she give all of _this_ up without a single fight first?

"Genichirou, please." Kimiko finally voiced her pleas. "It's my parents' wishes." Her lip quivered at the word _parents_.

_That's why_. Sanada's resolve wavered ever so slightly. Was he being selfish? Was he trying to make Kimiko an unfilial child, force her to go against her parents' hopes even after they were gone forever?

But he couldn't imagine her happy with someone like Daemon, who had hurt her and squashed her heart into the dirt. Selfish as it sounded, he saw her future with only him, their family, maybe kids and relatives. So...was he really being selfish by not letting her go?

His hands dropped from her shoulders to take off his cap and run fingers raggedly through his hair, trying to clear his mind. Kimiko stared at him, her expression almost...afraid. Sanada growled in frustration and stuffed his cap back on.

If they couldn't find a solution now, they might as well just go their separate ways at this point and calm down. They both (namely him) needed time to calm down and think things through. Right, it was best for them both to take a break from each other. For a day. Or two. Or maybe more. Maybe.

Without another word, Sanada turned around and stalked away, heading home. His large, justified strides soon morphed into hurried ones when he felt (was it his imagination?) a gaze of unbearable sadness, drilling through his back straight into his heart. Sanada clenched a fist to bear the temptation, and plowed his way to the school gate. It was for the best, for now. _Resist the temptation; don't turn around. You _can't_ turn around. No matter what you do..._

_Don't_. _Turn. Around_.

* * *

><p>Yukimura opened the door, and raised an eyebrow. "Genichirou?"<p>

"Seiichi," he said tiredly.

Wordlessly, Yukimura ushered Sanada in, knowing when you could ask questions and pry. Right now was obviously not a good time.

He sat his friend down at the dining table, almost cracking a smile at the ironic similarity to Kimiko's abrupt visit a few months ago. But he held it in for Sanada's sake. Because...clearly, something was wrong. Terribly wrong.

After disappearing into the kitchen for a few moments, he came back and set a cup of chamomile tea in front of Sanada. "Here you go, your favorite."

When Sanada was silent, Yukimura continued in a conversational fashion, "And you're just in luck. We got your favorite brand just yesterday when my sister was whining for it, so it's-"

"Seiichi," Sanada said warningly. Yukimura stopped, looking at him.

"Yes?"

When their eyes met, Sanada dropped his gaze, immediately sighed, and put a hand to his temple, rubbing circles to clear his growing headache. "I'm an idiot."

"You fought with Kimiko-chan," Yukimura guessed knowingly.

Sanada replied with a grunt of affirmation.

"Over what?"

Now, Sanada hesitated. He couldn't just _tell_ Yukimura, even if he was Kimiko's childhood friend. What if Yukimura didn't know, and Kimiko didn't want him to know? In that case, she would get angry at him even if she wasn't _already_.

He went back to rubbing his temples in frustration, the other boy just staring oddly at him.

_Sanada's acting strangely...like he's uncomfortable with telling me. _Yukimura mused. Kimiko... Sanada... uncomfortable... secret? _Wait a minute._ He put two and two together, much too quickly for Sanada's comfort.

"Wait," Yukimura spoke in a pitch higher than usual, his anxiety almost causing his voice to break like, well, a teenage boy's. "Did Kimiko finally tell you about _him_?"

His capped companion visibly stiffened, and his silence was an answer in itself. Yukimura pulled out another chair and sat as well, sagging wearily down into the chair's cushion. "So, she told you, huh..."

"And about her parents' will."

"What?" Yukimura didn't register what Sanada was going on about, until... _Oh_. "Wait. She mentioned that to me and Tezuka, too...but she's not going to go through with it. Right?"

Silence.

"No." Yukimura smiled, but it was a shaky one, completely unlike the angelic weapon-in-disguise that he displayed without a second thought across the net of a tennis court. "She wouldn't. Right, Genichirou? Right?"

As his friend's upset expression and voice rang through Sanada's ears, he thought with a pained expression, _Don't I wish it were a lie_.

April had been a pretty great month. After the whole March fiasco, their relationship was going steady. They spent every day together, going places, waiting for one another, talking to each other so much at night that Sanada's parents jokingly threatened to quaratine them after dinner. And although they had mini-fights, nothing had been full-blown or too serious to patch up. But now that this _thing_ had appeared, Sanada began to doubt himself. Had he really been with a girl that he knew that well? Could he still continue this relationship despite the fact that she was engaged to someone else, and didn't appear to have any intention of backing out?

It was like, all of a sudden, someone had built an obstacle between them. Maybe it was her; maybe it was him. Or maybe it was both of them combined, that had built this glass wall into their relationship, where they could see each other, were only separated by an inch or two, but neither dared shatter the glass- for fear of the flying shards stabbing the other person and drawing red, scarlet blood.

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><p><strong>PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW! I'D LOVE TO HEAR FROM <em>ALL<em> OF MY READERS!**

Love you all, and please do drop me a note (PM) or just yell at me in your reviews to finish this darn story already! XD

~hime-chan


	20. A Covert Farewell

Hi guys! Sorry, it's been a while-and I apologize for not being able to respond to all the PMs and a few reviews that said to keep writing! School took quite the toll on me.

But enough excuses! Hopefully this next chapter can make up for my (pretty much, though unofficial) hiatus!

Enjoy! AND PLEASE REVIEWWW! teehee ~\(^_^)/~

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><p>Sanada sat next to the window, looking out to his family's backyard despite his gaze being not the least bit focused. He simply sat there while his brain completely zoned out and was elsewhere, in the clouds perhaps-but in any case, definitely not where he was currently located.<p>

It felt like his life was suddenly coming apart at the seams. All for just one and only one person.

For the first time, he had seen Yukimura Seiichi break down and bawl like a child who had lost his mother. His parents had gone berserk with panic when their son had not come home with their new "daughter" AND mentioned "daughter" did not come home the entire night. A few days, they got confirmation that she was staying over at Tezuka's, so they calmed down somewhat, but still. It was a nightmare. Everything tied to her-which was a lot of stuff in his life-was breaking down at a record celerity he was absolutely _not_ comfortable with.

Not to mention. He himself was losing sleep and any desire to eat over the issue at hand, as well as spending hours on end considering what his options were. His regulars had already been asking him the past couple days if he was sick; Sanada had not noticed until they mentioned it, but apparently he had developed dark circles under his eyes. Yanagi especially had been concerned about the amount of weight he had lost due his lack of an appetite. Sanada saw his friend looking at him constantly with his forehead creased in worry.

Sanada took off his cap and ran a callused hand through his hair, roughly mussing it up in his frustration. What could he do. What. Could. He. Do?

If this girl wasn't from a family equally traditional as his, or had the personality that she had, there would be no _room_ for debate. He would just keep her from Dameon. Whether by his (nonexistent) suaveness or persuasion or just brute force _dammit_ he'd keep her from that low-life's prying eyes and hands so that she'd stay with _him_. Because clearly, there was some part of her that wanted to stay in Japan.

But this was Kimiko: heir to the historically famous Moriyama dojos and a girl with a commitment to filial piety that was both impressive and overwhelmingly frustrating. Even if her heart was screaming at her to stay, as Sanada suspected, her wavering thoughts to leave with Dameon already showed that her brain was clicking in and persuading her to go back to Germany.

He didn't want to let that happen. For God's sake, by his grandfather's "decree," she was practically his fiancee now! Who in his right mind would allow a girlfriend-almost-fiancee to walk out of his life with some other _dude_ that claims to be _her_ "true" fiancee? _Jeezus_, Sanada thought with a deep frown and furrowed brows, his hand gripping his cap tightly. _Give me a break! Or some better joke to laugh at_.

...Perhaps he had been thinking the wrong way. It wasn't what he _could_ do that was the issue. There was a mountain of possibilities for that question.

The real question at hand was: what _should_ he do?

Of course, he wanted to be with Kimiko if the circumstances allowed. If that wasn't the case, he certainly wouldn't be going out with her-let alone living with her. But when things boiled down to the most basic (and most difficult) issues, his priority was going to be Kimiko's happiness. He wanted her to be happy and not regret what she was doing with her life. Heck, he'd send her off himself if she requested it of him.

Even if it meant that he would be alone for the rest of _his_ life, after learning what it meant to be in a true relationship-because she meant that much to him. She had taught him what it meant to care for the opposite sex, to have consideration for what another party has to say, and to just invest himself in something that cannot be summed up as "training" and "tournaments," that was a heavy gamble, and that had no guaranteed outcome.  
>He was willing to give this special existence whatever it took to make sure that she was the happiest she could be. She deserved it.<p>

Especially now, after so many tears (hers) and hurdles, he could say it with confidence: no matter what balance scale was used, seeing her happy now weighed much more heavily than his selfish desires. That genuine smile of hers would be plentiful payment for any gamble he took to get there.

_I'm in deep, aren't I_... Sanada said wryly to himself, the frustration showing blatantly in that pained smile that no one would ever see. It was probably for the best that no one did, for Sanada had never been so close to losing control of all restraint and descending into pure, childlike bawling.

A sharp rap on his door snapped Sanada out of his self-mocking reverie.

It was unlike any knock he had heard from his parents or grandfather-who was it? In any case, he drove down any lingering desire to cry and straightened his posture. "Come in."

"Sorry for the intrusion." The door opened, and the guest stepped in.

Sanada blinked at the "intruder" / guest. In his surprise, his mouth couldn't even move, and so no words were spoken, either. He just stared blankly at this boy whom he never thought he would see in his _own house_.

"Yo." The said boy lifted a hand in a brief greeting, grinning awkwardly at Sanada.

* * *

><p>After a slightly rushed flurry of hospitality insisted by his mother, Sanada sat down with his guest at their dining table. Brows furrowed and an unsettled feeling in his stomach, he looked at the boy.<p>

"So." Shishido Ryo glanced up from his cup of tea and looked Sanada in the eye, steadily. "Did Atobe want something with me? I can call Yukimura if-"

"It's not about Atobe."

"Oh?" Sanada raised an eyebrow.

"It's about Kimiko."

Sanada again sat in silent shock. It seemed like more and more enigmatic puzzle pieces came to jump out at him and jumble his mind up even more. What on earth did any _Hyotei_ (and male) **tennis** regulars have to do with Kimiko? She didn't even know the difference between a lob and smash, for crying out loud!

Shishido eyed Sanada warily. "Dude, if you're making up any weird ideas, just stop right there."

At Sanada's wide-eyed look of alarm and suspicion of having his mind read, Shishido sighed. _I can't believe I was actually right about what he was thinking_... "Dude, I'm pretty sure Atobe mentioned this before, but Kimiko went to the same middle school as most of the Hyotei regulars. Ring a bell, man?"

Sanada was already a bit miffed by Shishido's casual language-what with the "dude"s and "man"s. But he was even more irritated to be reminded that he had forgotten that very important link between Shishido and Kimiko.

"If I remember correctly, you're cousins?" he said gruffly.

"Bingo."

Something struck Sanada as odd. It couldn't possibly be true...

"Wait, you're a cousin of Tezuka?"

"...Technically speaking, yes. Not by blood though. There was some weirdo marriage thing so we're, like, second-removed or whatever nonsense there is. But yeah, I guess so." Shishido got midway through a shrug but then suddenly slapped his hand to his forehead. "I didn't come to talk about this. We don't have much time, we gotta go. Come on!" He attempted to start dragging Sanada out the door, but the latter resisted.

"Where are you bringing me?"

"Like I said, it's about Kimiko! I don't have the time to explain nice and slowly here in your house, get in my car and I'll explain along the way!"

Sanada let himself be dragged outside...and into one of the fanciest and shiniest black limousines he had ever seen. Not quite as impressive as Atobe's, but already far past Sanada's comfort zone. _Darned rich Hyotei kids and their everyday luxuries_...

* * *

><p>Sanada's discomfort in the expensive-looking limousine aside, he knew that if Shishido (he knew the other boy mainly for cutting his hair a few months back; even Sanada was impressed by how serious he was and how far his dedication would take him) came out to find him and basically abducting him in this expensive-black-limousine, then something was definitely up.<p>

"So." Shishido turned towards Sanada when the latter spoke. "I'm listening," he said expectantly.

Shishido sighed. He abruptly twisted his body towards his driver and ordered, "Airport, please. Stat." After waiting for the limousine to rumble to life and they began flying down the streets of Kanagawa, Shishido turned back to Sanada.

"I'm not good with long, indirect explanations, really, so I'm just going to get straight to the point."

At Sanada's nod of approval, Shishido thought for about three seconds, and then blurted out, "Kimiko's at the airport right now with Dameon. She's leaving with him to Germany. They're leaving in-" he glanced at his watch, "an hour and a half. We can barely make it in time at this point, but it'll be barely, for sure..." he looked at Sanada, and all words that he had been about to so disappeared from his mind.

"Hey. Dude, Sanada. Wake up." He first waved a hand, then snapped his fingers, and then just resorted to all-out shaking Sanada's shoulder. "Oi, don't zone out on me now, man! We've got our work cut out for us!"

Sanada drifted out of his cloud of shock back into reality. His forehead creased and his eyes narrowed with determination. "All right. What do you want me to do?"

"I'll explain that as well as I can in a bit." Shishido remembered that he had almost forgotten something. He fished something out from his backpack, and handed it to Sanada.

The latter stared at the bright pink and poorly-wrapped object in his hand, and then looked at Shishido. "A present?" His expression was guarded as usual, but Shishido could detect a trace of utter confusion as well.

"Don't get any wrong ideas, man. I'm straight." He chuckled despite himself. "It's from Kimiko."

Sanada stared at the present once more. After a lot of urging from Shishido, he unwrapped the present as neatly as he could-which was unexpectedly difficult due to Kimiko's ingeniously horrid method of wrapping-and found a cap and card in his hands. Turning the cap and examining it from front to back, he found it to be awfully similar to the one he was wearing at the moment. (Wasn't his cap's model already not manufactured anymore?) Sanada lightly touched his own cap currently sitting on his head, as if he felt the need to confirm that it was with him. He opened up the card.

_To Sanada Genichirou-  
>Genichirou, if you're reading this right now, then that means my silly clown of a cousin safely delivered this to you.<br>It feels like it's been forever since we last spoke...and the last time we spoke was basically the last time we'll ever see each other for a long, long while.  
>I'm leaving with Dameon today, to go back home to Germany. As much as I hate his guts and essentially the very air he breathes, well, you know me well enough- I can't abandon my parents' will. I would come to hate myself and regret it so much, I just know it.<br>I love you so much, Genichirou. The past couple of days, as I was deciding what to do, I realized that I really really do, and I hope you know that. And that's why I pray that you will come to forgive me for leaving you behind.  
>The cap is customized for you, in case you haven't noticed. I peeked at the manufacturer and gave them a call. Turns out that the president's daughter is actually one of my school friends from Germany, so he was super nice about doing me a favor. Anyways, consider it a farewell and apology gift. You might not have noticed this either, but the back of your cap is starting to wear thin. So, just wear this when you feel like switching it up? Or something? ...Ugh what am I talking about. It's really my selfish hope that you'll remember who I am even after I'm gone. I'll come back to you someday, when everything's finally settled. <em>I'm not asking that you'll wait for me, but I just want to tell you somehow, that you'll always be in my heart. Hah, I'm so cheesy.<em>_

__Well, I guess this is goodbye. Take care. I love you.  
>Moriyama Kimiko<em>_

Sanada closed the card and then gripped it in both hands; his vision was beginning to swim.

"That. Idiot." He bit out.

It took everything he had in order to hold his consciousness together. He could only sit there, bent over in despair over the card, the suppressed emotions from before now threatening to erupt like a volcano and spill over out of his control.

Beside him, Shishido did not say a word, but just politely turned away to look out the limousine window, when he saw the incoming sunlight refract off the first drops of wetness that fell silently from Sanada's eyes.

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><p>AN: OKAY WEEEEE WE'RE GETTING CLOSE TO THE END!

This is totally unedited, so if there's any mistakes, please feel free to PM/review me about it ^^

Otherwise, I hope this sufficed as requite for my hiatus, and a huge thank you to all my lovely, dedicated readers for sticking with me all this time! If you actually read the entire thing up until here, I think I can say for real that you're set to be one of my best friends in the entire world :3

Until next time~ PLEASE REVIEW! xoxo hime-chan


	21. Everything and Anything

SORRY FOR THE SUPER LONG HIATUS! HERE IS A NEW CHAPTER FOR ALL MY AWESOME READERS (and newcomers of course :D) don't forget to shower me with lovely reviews afterwards too please~

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><p>"All passengers for flight 510, please proceed to gate number 48. I repeat, all passengers on flight 510, please proceed to gate number 48."<p>

The monotonous voice rang through the PA system, and a miniature exodus began to file through the entrance to Narita Airport's customs and security check-in lines. The stuffy atmosphere of the airport followed the people, like a cloud of bees tracking a trail of pollen.

A certain blue-eyed young man tugged at his companion's luggage and arm. "Come on, we're leaving."

Two things answered him, and neither were verbal responses.

The first was silence.

The second? A perfect view of the back of Moriyama Kimiko's head.

Kimiko stared across the airport, absentmindedly noting the dreary white color and emptiness all around her, as the occasional passerby rushed by to get to his flight or an impatient cab. The only dab of color came from the setting sun, its rays filtering through the small glass windows to illuminate the -again- white ground.  
><em>Sunset<em>.  
>It was clearly too late to regret it. And she wasn't. Of course she wasn't going to regret following her parents' will.<br>But something inside her still tugged at her heart, nudging her, _You can't do this. Don't. _**Don't. **_You won't be happy..._

And so she fought. Her instinct fought against her conscience, and her mind fought against her heart.

A loud throat-clearing from behind her got her attention, but she didn't bother turning around. It was obvious who it was anyways, and she didn't feel like showing that she even noticed his presence.  
>"We have to <em>go<em>, Kimiko." Impatience colored Dameon's statement.

Kimiko gave a noncommittal grunt. Despite her current mood, she couldn't prevent a bittersweet smile from flashing across her face. It sounded quite like Sanada's, if she should say so herself.

_Ah, Genichirou_..._where are you right now? I wonder what you're doing? Has Ryou given you my last gift?_

"You know..." the voice behind her now had a slightly gleeful lilt to it that made her cringe and want to throw an uppercut to his chin at the same time. "He's not going to come. Or he won't make it in time." She could hear him shrug. "Either way works for me."

_Genichirou, where _are_ you? Save me!_

"I don't need him to." She added, "And I'm _not_ looking for him."

Kimiko shot Dameon a glare when he snorted, but unfazed, he said nonchalantly, "Well then, that's for the best. You might as well just submit to this and obediently become my wife. 'Cause once that happens, don't even think about running away. With no name, no money, or on the streets, who's going to take care of you if I don't?"

"I WILL." Another voice from behind them rang loud and clear.

_No_. Kimiko's clenched jaw loosened and fell open; her eyes grew wide and her body froze up. _No, it can't be_...She turned around, her heart hammering in her chest, her pulse racing...

But it _was_.

Standing there- or rather, bent over, was Sanada Genichirou -vice captain of Rikkaidai's tennis team, renowned Emperor of the tennis courts, supposed "grandfather" of the Rikkai kouhais... and the love of her life. He had his hands on his knees, his chest heaving, with sweat pouring down his face. But bright and filled with unwavering emotion, his eyes remained fixed on her as he breathed heavily- she almost felt like crying again just from seeing him.

After he took in a few more deep gulps of air, Sanada straightened and made his way over to her, (completely ignoring the slackjawed Dameon in the back) and proceeded to engulf her in a huge, almost crushing embrace. A few moments passed before Kimiko realized what was going on, but she soon returned the hug just as fiercely.  
><em>I missed you. I missed you. I missed you<em>. Before she could consciously rein them back, the tears welled up and started running down her cheeks again.

Sanada let his arms go slack and instead brought Kimiko to arm's length away. His hands moved slowly- from her shoulders, to caress the slight hollow at the nape of her neck, and upwards to run along her jawline, his eyes always still staring into hers. As a fresh set of tears began to course down her face, he chuckled and lightly rubbed them away using a gentle thumb. _I missed you too. _"Crybaby as always, huh?" Though the words sounded harsh to an onlooker, there was still a fondness and subtle message mixed into them that she would not ever miss.

She nodded through the tears, somehow smiling brightly despite the situation.  
><em>You're here. You're here!<em>

He ran a large, warm hand through her hair, bringing it to caress her face again tenderly. _I always will be. _

Now, as if to shield her, he brought Kimiko behind his broad back. Now glaring at Dameon, he repeated his loud declaration from before. "_I_ will take care of Kimiko."

"_You_?" Dameon snorted loudly. "What a joke! What do _you_ have, commoner, that I don't? Connections? Wealth? A complete family?"

Sanada stayed silent.

"Well, let me remind you, Sanada Genichirou. _I_ have her parents' will!" Dameon yelled gleefully.

Sanada smirked, but the expression in his eyes remained hard. "Is it my turn to talk?"

"What?" Dameon was slightly taken aback by Sanada's unfazed attitude.

"Well, even if you didn't let me, I'm going to say it anyways. There's one thing I have with me, Dameon, that you will never be able to get or take away from me." At Kimiko's fisting his shirt, he patted her arm. _I'm here_.

"Dameon, I have Kimiko's heart. And no matter where we are, how much time passes, or whether Kimiko or I am dead, it will _never_ become yours. Kimiko's parents may have written that will, word for word-but that was without the knowledge of who she would meet, and for the purpose of securing her a comfortable life, even if it meant sacrificing a wholesome relationship."

"But now she has me. So again, I ask _you_, Dameon-what don't you have that I do possess? Connections? We're one of the most famous dojo families, equal to the Moriyama clan. Wealth? Ditto. A complete family? Mother, Father, Grandfather, my nephew. Probably even more complete, and _much_ more functional than yours, I have no doubt. And I have her heart, too. I have _everything_ and _anything_ that Kimiko will need for the road ahead. So, that will has served its purpose and should be completely void at this point. If you have any conscience in you right now, you'll rip it up and throw it in the fireplace-I'm sure you have one in that traditional European mansion of yours in Germany. Thank you very much, but I'll be taking Kimiko back to our _home_ now."

Sanada grabbed Kimiko's hand and pulled her out of the airport, almost dragging her as she tried to comprehend what had just unfolded before her. Once it hit her, Kimiko yelped and began telling an unyielding Sanada to slow down. The two of them bickered even as they made their way outside.

Dameon watched silently, his face seemingly unsure of what to show. He settled for a complicated mix between a grimace and a smile. "Dameon-bocchama, is this okay?" his butler spoke quietly beside the blue-eyed man. "You came all this way from Germany for her, to make up for the misunderstanding-"

"Don't say anything else, Sibelius. Just...don't."

Dameon gazed somewhat wistfully out at the still bickering couple about to disappear into the distance. "As long as she's happy, it doesn't matter what happened. Everything's in the past now. 'Everything and anything'..." _My feelings for her, too, I have to put behind me now_.

The blue-eyed boy turned his back to the scene of the (seemingly?) happy couple. He let out a sigh. "Become happy, my love."


End file.
